Stars and Water
by ColleenJoy
Summary: Lois is his future, Lana is his past, this is the present and Clark meets someone new. Romance and adventure occur, peril and conflict happens,this is Smallville love is a distinct possibility.
1. Chapter 1

Stars and Water

by Colleen Joy

Summary: Alien boy meets human girl, romance and adventure occur, peril and conflict happens (this is Smallville) love is a distinct possibility.

AN: AU Season six-ish, Smallville and the characters in it aren't mine (but Clark should be) Maria and the other non Smallville characters and the plot are my own.

Chapter 1.

Maria's muscles relaxed as the warm sun soaked into her aching back. She sighed and stretched her shoulders, rolling them up to her ears and letting them fall. After spending the day helping her Mom to move all their belongings, hauling boxes up stairs and putting the couch in just the right place, she needed this peace.

Looking out at the sparkling, clear waters of the lake she smiled. There was no sound other than the lapping of the waves on the rocks and the sigh of the soft breeze in the pine trees. The air smelled of warm pine needles with a hint of fresh moisture from the lake. She adjusted her drawing pad across her knees and prepared to work on a new drawing, gazing out at Crater Lake through the long grass that surrounded her. Her dark, wavy hair kept sliding forward into her face so she impatiently pulled it into a ponytail, then she refocused her attention on the lake.

The sound of gravel crunching startled her and she turned her head to see a tall young man with chestnut brown hair walking onto the dock about 20 yards from where she sat. He walked slowly to the end of the dock and stretched his arms up over his head. Then he kicked out of his boots and slid off his socks, wiggling his toes on the warm wood.

She watched as he reached down and in one smooth motion stripped off his shirt. Maria stared at his lovely back, broad muscular shoulders, and narrow waist. She was so absorbed in the beautiful, smooth, curves she saw there she didn't notice he was unfastening his pants until he slid them down and stepped out of them. Suddenly she realized he was probably going to take off the rest and she was pretty sure he didn't know she was watching. Should she make a noise? Leave? Maria felt frozen to the spot as the right moment to say something passed and he stepped out of his blue boxers and stood naked before her.

God, he was beautiful! He looked like some statue from a Greek temple. The sunlight made his skin glow golden and the shadows caressed every naked curve, showing off his well defined muscles. Then he ran to the end of the dock and did a cannonball into the water, leaping high with an exuberant yell.

Maria seized the moment he disappeared under the surface to leap to her feet and sprint from the clearing. She didn't want him to know she had seen him. Later at home she added a new element to her sketches of the lake. She drew him as he stood on the dock just before diving, the image was burned into her minds eye and she had no problem recalling the details. "Smallville has more going for it than I thought!" She murmured to herself. "I wonder who he is."

The next day Clark was walking slowly down the sidewalk on his way back to his truck after stopping off at the hardware store. He looked at the Talon and thought about Lana. In the end they'd both agreed it would never work. They had both changed and although they still cared for each other, they had grown apart. She was like a stranger to him now. The pain of their parting had dulled to a bearable level but it was still there. It was such a habit to think of her he couldn't shut it off. He wondered if he was just destined to be alone.

Since returning from the Phantom Zone he had had a hard time shaking off a feeling of isolation. Chloe was wrapped up in Jimmy, or at least she should be, and he didn't want to get in the way of that. Lois was working two jobs, one for his Mom and one for the Inquisitor. His Mom was gone much of the time and when he did see her he hated to worry her. He was dealing with creatures that had the power to inflict terrible damage to the people of earth and they could apparently hurt him as well. He had to be fast and discrete about taking them out without getting himself killed in the process. Fighting with the Zoners made him feel more alien than he ever had and without his Dad to talk things over with sometimes he felt lost.

Clark heard a musical voice laughing and turned to see a tall girl with long, wavy, dark brown hair walking down the sidewalk holding hands with a little boy about three years old. The boy was talking animatedly and the girl had her head bent to listen. As she walked away Clark saw her bend down and turn to tie one of the boy's shoes and he caught a glimpse of her face. He also got a rewarding view of how well her jeans fit before he hastily moved his eyes back up with a blush. She was too young to be the boy's mother and he wondered if they were siblings.

Her smile as she looked up at the child lit up her whole face, her eyes twinkled, and she had dimples in her cheeks. Clark thought he had never seen anything so beautiful. Everything from her voice to her beaming smile radiated a beauty and joy in life that Clark felt drawn to like a thirsty man looking at a glass of cool, clear water. He wondered who she was. He stood by his truck and considered following her, then decided not to for fear of looking like a stalker. He got in and drove home but the rest of the day he had this image in his mind of a musical laugh and a dazzling smile.

To be continued…


	2. Chapter 2

Stars and Water

Chapter 2

Two days later Maria was at the Talon getting coffee. She had just dropped her little brother Nick off at his preschool and was feeling frazzled. Her Mother's new job meant Maria had to take care of Nick more and she was realizing she wasn't as prepared for it as she thought. He had been difficult and she had been so busy convincing him to keep his shoes on that she had forgotten to add the water to the coffeepot. Then she had forgotten his lunch and had to drive back to get it. After finally getting him to preschool she decided to let someone else make the coffee and came into the Talon to relax.

She ordered a large cup of black coffee and when they handed it to her she held it to her nose and inhaled blissfully. Things are going to go much better now, she thought. Then she turned around with her steaming cup of coffee and walked right into Clark, pouring hot coffee down the front of his blue T-shirt. "Oh no!" Maria exclaimed as Clark jumped back, "Oh God, I'm so sorry, I must have burned you!" She grabbed a glass of ice water off a nearby table and dumped it on his chest.

"Whoa, that's okay!" Clark exclaimed "I think the fire's out now!" and he laughed.

Maria was surprised at his good nature and gathered the courage to look up, and up, into his eyes. She had to stifle a gasp at how beautiful they were. They were a light, clear green, with lovely long, black lashes and they were gazing merrily back at her as he flashed her a reassuring smile. She couldn't help but smile back as she apologized again, "I am sorry, I'm having one of those mornings and I didn't see you."

"It's okay, really" Clark said "I wasn't watching either." Not only was he okay, Clark was secretly delighted, he recognized the girl he had seen downtown the other day and now he had an excuse to talk to her. She could pour coffee on him all she wanted if she would just keep looking up at him with those amazing warm brown eyes of hers. Now she was blushing and her cheeks were turning a very pretty shade of pink, and those dimples!

She was so cute and flustered as she tried to wipe his shirt with a pile of napkins that Clark felt a powerful urge to kiss her and show her everything would be all right. As if he'd ever have the guts to do something like that, he thought. "Look, let me buy you another coffee, I don't think there's much left in your cup." He said and in spite of her protests he bought her a fresh cup and then invited her to sit with him to drink it. "My table is right here and that way you don't have so far to carry it." He teased.

Maria sat at the table and they drank their coffee in silence for a moment. Say something, she thought, anything, but her mind was a complete blank. All she could do was look at his gorgeous face as he smiled at her and then looked down at his coffee. He was beyond good looking with his perfect skin, strong jaw, slightly messy brown hair curling on his collar and his impossibly green eyes.

When he smiled his shy smile it took her breath away. She felt his smile like a physical blow to her gut, knocking the wind out of her and rendering her senseless. She was afraid if she talked now nothing but gibberish would come out.

It was strange how he looked familiar somehow. Not his face, she would never have forgotten that once she had seen it, but the way he had walked as they went to the table, his long legs, slender waist and broad shoulders. Then it came to her and she blushed deep crimson. He was the guy from the lake.

Say something, Clark thought. He felt his breath catch as he saw her sweet smile aimed at him. He felt blessed somehow, like he was being smiled at by an angel. A warm feeling filled him and he was afraid if he spoke his voice would crack.

Clark watched her lashes brush her cheeks and her soft hair slip forward into her face as she quickly looked down into her coffee. He longed to reach out and brush her hair away from her face, cup her cheek with his hand, and kiss those lovely lips that curved up so sweetly at the corners. He noticed she kept her eyes glued to her coffee and her cheeks were even redder than before. Wow, she's even shyer than I am, he thought, and somehow that thought gave him confidence.

"My name's Clark," He said holding out his hand, "Clark Kent". She reached out and put her hand in his and he felt the touch all the way through his body like an electrical current, warm and exciting. He felt heat grow behind his eyes and to his astonishment had to control his heat vision for the first time in a long time.

"Maria Desantis" She said, smiling into his incredible eyes. His hand was warm and gentle and he gave her hand a little squeeze rather than a handshake. She felt the touch as though it had been the most intimate caress and her body responded with a flash of heat that shocked her. For a moment as she looked into his smiling eyes the world faded and it seemed like everything stopped. She slowly, reluctantly, took her hand back.

"You're new to Smallville aren't you?" Clark asked, clearing his throat.

"Yeah, we moved in last week from Eugene, Oregon." She replied. "My Mom just started a job working for Luthor Corps." Maria smiled happily at Clark. She was proud of her Mom; this was a prestigious position in a world renowned company. Clark felt a chill come over him at the mention of the Luthor name and suddenly all those warm happy thoughts fled, to be replaced by harsh memories.

Clark's reaction to the name surprised her; he gasped and moved away, almost as though he was ready to bolt for the door. "Your Mom knows Lex Luthor?" Clark asked.

Maria looked at him puzzled, "She knows his head of human resources but I don't think she ever got to meet Mr. Luthor himself. Is something wrong?"

Clark looked away and was silent a moment, then he said quietly "I know it's none of my business but your Mom shouldn't be working for him." Clark looked back and caught her gaze, looking earnestly into her eyes. "Maria, please take my word for it, your Mother is in danger working for Luthor Corps."

Maria was shocked. What would make him say a thing like that? The concern in his eyes was real and it made the hair stand up on her neck. She replied "My Mother is a geneticist, she's working on a project that involves DNA and mutations, and she is seeking a cure for cancer and other diseases. How could that be dangerous?"

Clark's mouth dropped open. "She's researching mutations? What kind of mutations? Who's DNA?" Clark leaned toward her and his voice grew louder in alarm as he thought, dear god, what was this girl's Mother working on? His DNA, meteor infected people, both?

Maria shifted away from Clark. She started to get up. "Look uh…Clark," She was so rattled she couldn't remember his name for a second. "Thanks for the coffee and all, I'm really sorry about your shirt but, ah, I have to go." Good looking or not this guy was getting pretty intense and she wasn't comfortable with it.

Great, now she's scared of me, Clark thought, way to go Kent, not likely to go out with you now. "That's okay Maria," Clark said quietly "I'm sorry I got so insistent about your Mom's job. Lex and I have some, ah…history, that's all." He looked into her eyes, his expression very serious, as he said "You seem like a nice person and I'll bet your Mom is too. I hate to see someone like you involved with Lex Luthor. Nice people don't do well in his world."

Maria looked back at him. She didn't want to believe him, she didn't know him at all, but something told her she could trust him. She felt cold. She wanted to see her Mom right now and be sure she was okay. What had her Mom gotten into? "Thank you Clark" she said with a tremble in her voice, "I'll talk to my Mom about it." She gave him a weak half smile, "Bye" and she fled.

To be continued…


	3. Chapter 3

Stars and Water

Chapter Three

The next day Maria was jogging down a winding road through corn fields. This seemed to be the main scenery around Smallville and she liked the wide open feeling of looking miles to the horizon with no buildings in sight.

Maria was filled with anxiety about her Mother but there was nothing she could do. The talk they had last night should have reassured her but it felt wrong somehow. Her Mom had told her everything was okay but she could tell by the way she quickly changed the subject that something was bothering her. Clark's warning and the fear that had run cold fingers up her spine still lingered in her mind. So did the memory of his smile and her reaction to his touch. Unable to ignore her whirlwind emotions she decided to go for a run to work out her jittery feelings. It felt good to move but the day was hotter than she expected and sweat was running down her face and ran stinging into her eyes.

She heard a river up ahead and saw the bridge. Relief was in sight! She sped up hoping to be able to go for a swim. Maria stopped at the bridge and looked down at the swirling river below. Okay, not a place to swim, she thought, as she looked at the swift current and large rocks. Well, at least she could sit on a rock and cool her feet.

Maria scrambled down a trail to the river bank. The roar of the river filled her head and she breathed in the cooler air and felt the spray on her face from where the water splashed against rocks and sent a fine mist into the air. Maria took off her shoes and socks and climbed out onto a flat rock jutting into the current. She sat down and stuck her feet into the water. Man that's like ice, she thought, as she kicked her feet around. The water felt good but she didn't think she'd keep her feet in long. Maria reached forward to splash water on her sweaty face.

Clark stood tall and stretched his back as he looked proudly down the long, straight line of fence he had built. The air was hot but that didn't bother him, he was comfortable in his jeans and a red T-shirt. No sweat was on his brow or in his curling dark hair. He turned to face the slight breeze and inhaled the sweet scent of warm grass. Looking up he saw a hawk soaring over the field. Focusing his vision to zoom in on the bird he saw it was a young Red-tailed hawk, the wind ruffled its feathers and its eyes were scanning the ground below for prey.

He watched as the bird changed direction with the slightest movement of its wings and he found himself imagining flying and being able to soar above the earth like the hawk. Lately he had had more dreams about flying and he wondered if he was coming close to developing that ability. He found the thought frightening but not just because of his fear of heights. It seemed like such an inhuman ability to be able to break the law of gravity. Of course frying things with your eyes rated right up there too but he had achieved such perfect control of his heat vision that it felt natural. Clark wondered if flying would ever feel that way, like the hawk, natural and free. Clark listened to the wind, enjoying the quiet and letting his thoughts drift.

Maria lost her balance as she leaned forward and the current grabbed her feet and pulled her into the powerful flow. She screamed and scrabbled at the rock but there was nothing to hold onto and Maria gasped as the icy river closed over her head. She struggled frantically to the surface, gasping for air as the cold took her breath away. She was a strong swimmer but this was no swimming pool.

The river pushed her under, tossed her around, slammed her into rocks, and occasionally allowed her to get a breath. When she came up she screamed for help, even though she didn't think anyone was near.

Maria was pulled under again and for what seemed like an eternity she looked up through the water and could see the light and air but couldn't reach it. She fought with all she had and finally her head broke the surface again.

Clark thought he heard a scream in the distance and focused his hearing in that direction. The scream was repeated and now Clark had an idea of where it came from. He became a red and blue blur as he sped in the direction of the river. When he got to the bank he was filled with horror to see Maria struggling in the white water, desperately trying to cling to a rock.

A sick feeling washed over him, and a faint ache in his bones reminded him that Chloe called this river "a known source of our favorite green stuff " He knew somewhere in that water was death and his instincts were screaming at him to keep away.

Maria saw a man standing on the bank and she recognized him. "Clark!" she screamed as the river slammed her into another rock and she struggled to hang on. Clark looked at the river, then at her. He looked frightened and he hesitated for the barest of moments before he dove into the raging current.

She saw him swimming powerfully through the river to her, cutting through the turbulent water with ease. In no time he was by her side and she felt his arm holding her head up. Clark turned and swam for shore, using one arm and powerful kicks. Maria kicked too, trying to avoid being a limp weight dragging on him. They slammed into rocks but when they did she noticed he turned his body to take the brunt of it, shielding her from the blows the river was dealing out.

They were near the shore and she could tell he was touching the bottom when she noticed a change. His grip on her weakened, his breathing seemed desperate and he began gasping for air. She thought he was probably tiring, and no wonder, considering what he had just pulled her out of. "We're almost there Clark!" She yelled and she kicked as hard as she could to help.

Clark could feel that he was close to Kryptonite from the grinding pain and nausea that swept over him. He pushed through it and kept on swimming as fast as he could. Then he felt his foot touch bottom and the pain shot through him like fire in his veins. He gasped and struggled to breathe as the familiar weakness and agony swept over him and the world became a place of distant shadows. He dimly heard Maria call out to him and he tried to respond but when they hit another rock his head slammed hard into it and the darkness closed in.

Maria heard a crack and Clark groaned from the pain. He went limp in the water and his arm slid away from her as he was pulled under. "No!" she screamed and she grabbed for him. Wrapping her arm around his chin she held his head up as she kicked frantically for shore reaching with her other arm and heaving herself forward.

Maria touched the bottom and she felt rocks scrape her feet and ankles hard as she was dragged along it. She finally managed to get her feet under her and was wading to shore when she slipped and fell in the waist deep water. Clark's heavy body shifted out of her grasp and spun down river into the current.

Maria looked frantically for Clark as her scrambling feet gained purchase on the rocks. She hauled herself out of the river, so exhausted she could only go forward by crawling. Her body ached and she felt heavy and numb with cold.

Once free of the water her fear for Clark yanked her upright and forced her legs into a stumbling run. She heard the note of the river change as she rounded a bend and looked on in horror at a waterfall plummeting fifty feet into a canyon.

Maria stared into the pool at the bottom of the falls searching for any sign of Clark's body as she ran for the trail that led downhill. She caught sight of a flash of red and realized it was his shirt.

Maria charged straight down the slope, ignoring the switchbacks in the trail. She slid in the soft dirt and pine needles, got slapped across the face by brush and blackberry brambles, and at one point, had to grab a tree branch to keep herself from plunging headfirst to the bottom. Her bare feet were being ripped to shreds, tears flowed down her cheeks, and she was praying over and over like a chant, "Please God, let him be alive." It horrified her that this young man might have died trying to save her.

At last she reached the sandy shore and staggered to the edge of the pool. Maria saw his limp form floating face down in the water and gently moving with the current. She choked back a sob and waded in, caught his arm turning him face up, and pulled him to shore. She didn't notice the glowing green rocks in the water under the falls or how the glow went out of them as she pulled Clark away.

Maria propped his head against her chest, wrapped her hands under his shoulders and lifted with all her strength as she backed up, wresting him from the river's grasp. He was so heavy she couldn't hold his shoulders up for long and she fell backward with him on top of her, crashing her into the sand and gravel on the bank.

Most of his body was out of the water as she scrambled around to his side, ignoring her fresh bruises and gently cradling his face in her hand. "Clark," she called desperately, "Clark, can you hear me?" He lay unmoving; his body cold and limp on the bank.

Maria felt for a pulse at his throat and her heart leaped for joy as she felt a weak but steady bump under her fingertips. She checked to see if he was breathing but he lay completely still.

Maria quickly cleared his airway, tilted his head back and sealed her lips over his mouth, grateful she had paid attention in the First Aid class in school last year. All she could think was, don't die, please don't die, as she blew into his lungs. She repeated the breaths three more times when suddenly Clark heaved up, coughing and gagging as water flowed out of his mouth. Maria sat and watched with joy and relief as he lay back, breathing in huge breaths of sweet air. "You're going to be okay, Clark." she said, soothing his face with her hand, pushing his wet curls out of his eyes with trembling fingers.

Clark looked up, saw Maria's face, smiled and said "Maria" with a mixture of relief and amazement in his voice. "I'm glad you're safe." He shut his eyes for a moment and sighed, letting the warm sun give much needed energy to his body. The pain was gone and its absence felt wonderful. His strength was flowing back but he still felt a little dizzy as he tried to sit up.

"You saved my life," Clark said, looking into her eyes with open admiration, "Thank you."

Maria grinned at him. This guy was really something special, it hadn't escaped her notice that his first thought was for her safety. "I didn't do anything you wouldn't have done Clark, you wouldn't have been in any danger at all if you hadn't been busy saving me, so I guess we're even."

To be continued…


	4. Chapter 4

Stars and Water

Chapter 4

Clark couldn't believe how stubborn and independent Maria was. She wouldn't let him carry her and it killed him to watch her limp back up river to where her shoes were. She did at least lean on his arm and he tried to take as much weight as possible but it wasn't enough.

He watched her bite her lip and smile a little too brightly while she joked about how they should try next time to meet in a way that didn't involve him getting wet. When they got to her shoes he insisted she sit down and let him check her feet. "Well?" she asked as she watched him stare at her feet intently, "How are they, must we amputate?"

Clark looked up at her with amazement on his face. "I can't believe you walked at all." He said, "Your feet are full of thorns and scratches, they're scraped raw and bruised" He spoke with authority now. "You are not walking another step. I'm carrying you to my house, which is close, and then I'll drive you home."

Maria tried to argue but this time Clark would have none of it. He simply picked her up as she struggled to put on her shoes and in the middle of the words "I'm not light you know…" she found herself with a running shoe in each hand being held close to his damp yet warm, broad chest. He carried her up the slope and started across the fields, striding confidently without any sign of strain or breathlessness and he would not put her down.

"Wow!" she exclaimed "I can't believe you're doing this…I mean it's not that you don't look strong but I'm not little…I 'm five foot ten and I weigh…well, like I said I'm not light and… and, aren't you getting tired ?"

Clark grinned at her "Nope," he smiled "you weigh a lot less than Bessie's calf."

"Clark Kent did you just compare me to a cow?" huffed Maria.

Clark chuckled. "A very cute baby cow. Seriously Maria I carry 100 lb sacks of grain and haul around bales of hay all day, you aren't too hard for me to lift and you're kinda nice to carry." He smiled down into her eyes and she couldn't help but grin back.

Maria resigned herself to her fate and decided that there were worse things than being in Clark Kent's arms. She rested her head against his chest, closed her eyes and listened to his heart beating a slow steady rhythm. She was exhausted and must have drifted to sleep because the next thing she knew Clark was lowering her gently onto the porch swing at the Kent farm. He quickly spun a chair around and propped both her feet up on it. Then he told her to rest a moment and he'd be right back.

Maria sat on the swing and enjoyed the cool breeze that played across her face. She closed her eyes but opened them quickly when something tickled her cheek and made a snuffling noise in her ear. "Well, hello." She said to the furry face, wide open panting mouth and lolling tongue that filled her vision. "You're certainly friendly." She giggled, reaching out to scratch the neck of the large golden retriever that was darn near in her lap. The dog wagged his entire back half enthusiastically and slurped her chin.

"Blech." Maria defended herself from further displays of affection by crossing her arms in front of her face and said firmly, "No. sit." To her surprise the dog sat immediately and then watched her expectantly like he was waiting for the next command. "Well, aren't you well trained? Good boy." She crooned.

"Sorry if he's bothering you." Clark said as he came back out on the porch. He was carrying a basin of warm soapy water with a wash cloth in it, and a pair of tweezers. He had a pillow under his arm and a towel around his neck. "He loves visitors."

"He's not bothering me. I love dogs." said Maria, scratching the dog behind the ears while keeping an eye out for his sloppy, wet tongue. "What's his name?"

"Shelby" said Clark, and the dog pranced over to Clark wagging and trying to stick his nose in the bowl. "It's not food you goofball." laughed Clark, and he put the bowl on the porch, lifted Maria's feet and put the pillow, with the towel covering it, under them on the chair.

"What are you doing?" asked Maria nervously, eyeing the tweezers. She hated to let someone else take out slivers. It usually hurt less somehow when she did it herself.

"Taking care of you." said Clark with a reassuring smile, "Just relax, I know what I'm doing." and he very gently used the washcloth to rinse off all the dirt and gravel on her feet, hissing in sympathy as he saw all the cuts, thorns and bruises there were.

When her feet were clean he picked up the tweezers and Maria braced herself. To her surprise it hardly hurt at all. He was staring intently at her feet and when he pulled out a thorn he always got it at the first try. Maria relaxed and accepted his help. It was kind of nice to let someone take care of her and his hand holding her foot was warm and gentle. His thumb was stroking the top of her foot soothingly and she found her thoughts wandering.

"There, is that better?' said Clark as he finished her other foot. Maria came back to the moment with a little jump. "Oh, um, oh yes Clark. Thanks." Her voice came out husky and low and she cleared her throat, blushing furiously at his slightly puzzled expression. "I guess I was kind of falling asleep."

Suddenly Maria sat up in alarm. "What time is it? I have to get my little brother Nickie at three o'clock!"

"It's only about two thirty. I'll take you home right now and you should be able to get there on time." said Clark.

Maria quickly pulled on her socks and shoes and stood up. Her feet were still sore but they were a lot better and she grinned at Clark. "They really are better. I'll walk to the truck, thanks."

On the way to her house Maria tried to look out the window but her eyes kept wandering over to Clark. Now that they were both out of danger she couldn't seem to keep her eyes off the way his damp T shirt clung to his body. Her eyes moved to the rippling muscles in his arm as he shifted the truck, then down to his strong, sensitive hand on the gear shift. Clark looked over at her and smiled and she blinked rapidly. Caught! She smiled weakly. "Thanks for giving me a ride Clark. Are you sure you're okay to drive, you hit your head really hard back there." She asked.

"I feel fine." he said "I've got a hard head." He grinned and tilted his head to one side. "Just ask my Mom."

She grinned back at him. "It must be hard. I heard it hit and it sounded awful." Her smile disappeared and she looked seriously into his eyes "I'm really glad you're okay."

"Thanks" he said quietly and he looked back to the road.

He certainly seemed fine. She couldn't see a bruise on him, of course his shirt covered his body where he had slammed the rocks and he had thick hair. Really nice hair, it had been nice to touch his hair…stop Maria. What was with her? You'd think she had no decency at all. Here's this nice guy who nearly died saving her life, giving her a ride home and her thoughts were in the gutter. Time to look out at the scenery; corn, and corn, and more corn, oh and a crow, and corn, hardly distracting but Maria was determined. Darn they were at her house.

Clark struggled to keep his eyes on the road but he kept looking over at Maria and it was a rewarding picture. Her hair was disheveled in a decidedly sexy way and the dark curls were clinging to her cheeks and flowing across her shoulders. Her wet T-shirt outlined her curves clearly and they were very nice curves indeed. Clark quickly looked away as the heat rose in his face. What was he doing? The next thing you know he'd be using his x-ray vision to see her better. She sure was beautiful and his eyes slid over to her again. Oh man, she was looking at him this time. Clark smiled. What did she just say? Oh, about his head. How was he going to explain that? Better just shrug it off, maybe make a joke. Now she's looking all worried and sweet. God, he hated to lie. Clark looked back at the road. Darn, this must be her house.

"This is it." said Maria "Thanks again for the ride and for saving my life, oh, and taking care of my feet and, just…thanks." and she leaned across the seat and kissed his cheek. She was out of the car and running to her house before Clark could respond, he noticed she ran with hardly a trace of a limp. She turned at the door and waved then popped inside before he had time to do more than lift his hand. Clark drove away with a thoughtful look in his eye and a smile on his face.

To be continued…


	5. Chapter 5

Thank you for the reviews! I was beginning to wonder if anyone was reading this.

Since you like it I'll give you more, I hope you enjoy it!

Stars and Water

Chapter 5

It wasn't how she preferred to spend Saturday night, at a party full of glittering strangers who wore designer clothes that cost more than her used Toyota, but her Mom needed her support, so here she was. Maria sighed and looked around the ballroom, sipping her sparkling cider. Champagne might have helped but she had a few months until her twenty first birthday so cider would have to do. She started counting diamond necklaces just for fun, wow, that ladies' necklace should count for two, she thought.

Then she saw him. He walked in the door and he was so tall you could see him clearly above everyone else. He was breathtaking in a black Tux and black tie with a crisp white shirt. His hair was windblown and a bit wet from the rain and he ran his fingers through it nervously trying to get it to behave. She could feel her heartbeat speed up and her face flush. "Get a grip girl" she thought. She noticed a beautiful, older, redheaded woman holding his arm. The woman laughed and reached up to brush his hair off his face, looking up at him with such open love and pride Maria knew it had to be his Mother. Maria saw the way he looked back at her and thought, "Well, I like that. It's sweet he's so close to his Mom."

"Maria," her Mom said "I've been looking for you. Isn't this crazy? How do I look?" she twirled around so Maria could check. She had short, black hair liberally sprinkled with grey and hazel eyes that sparkled with excitement. She was a little shorter than Maria, and a lot heavier but Maria thought she looked beautiful in her long black silk dress and simple jewelry. "I have to stand in front of all these people in a minute and make a speech. I don't want my slip showing or something." She twisted her hands and bit her lip nervously.

"Mom, you look fantastic. You are going to do great!" Maria said proudly. "They may be dressed like royalty but these are all just people who care about children. They want to hear what you have to say."

Her Mom looked at her gratefully. "I'd rather be in the lab." She said with a half smile identical to Maria's own. "As a matter of fact I'd rather be getting a root canal but Mr. Luthor himself asked me to speak about children's cancer and our research, and I can't say no to him. Besides it's for a good cause, the hospital does need better facilities for the kids and their parents who want to stay there."

Maria grinned, "That's right Mom. Focus on the important stuff and you'll do fine." she said. "It's time Mom, go for it!"

As she watched her Mom approach the podium she overheard a brassy voice near her call out.

"Smallville! Man, you almost look handsome tonight!" Maria turned to see a tall, leggy blond in a glittering red dress talking to Clark nearby. "Hi, Lois" He said with a grin "you look nice too."

Then a short blond woman in a clinging low cut black dress hopped up and gave him a quick hug. "Glad to see you got away from the farm, Clark" she said with a sweet smile. "Are you here with your Mom? Where is she?"

"Hey, Chloe" He stepped back to look at her, his eyebrows arching and said, "Nice dress, you look like a high society babe." Clark smiled at Chloe as she grinned and blushed.

A young man cleared his throat and stepped forward between Clark and Chloe "Good to see ya CK." He said, holding out his hand.

Clark shook it, smiling happily into his face, "Jimmy, I'm glad you're back!"

"Hey guys, shut it," Commanded Lois, "Senator Kent is speaking."

Maria turned back to the podium in time to hear the Senator introduce her mother as "The distinguished scientist, Dr. Katherine Desantis." There was some polite applause and then the room got quiet as her mother stepped up to speak.

Maria felt a thrill of pride but it was replaced by anger when she heard a woman's voice mutter "So that's Lex's new pet scientist. I wonder how much souls are going for nowadays."

Maria whipped her head around to see Lois whispering to Chloe and heard Chloe reply "Come on Lois, she might not know what he's really up to. She wouldn't be the first good person to work for Lex."

Lois looked indignant. "Your dad worked in the fertilizer plant, Chloe, not the lab!"

Maria turned back around trying to ignore them and listen to her Mother's speech but she found it impossible as Lois choked and coughed when her mother praised Lex for his efforts in searching for a cure for children's cancer. Maria was ready to give Lois a piece of her mind when she heard Clark saying "Shhhh, Lois, come on, you're being rude."

"Fine Smallville," Lois said "I'll just interview Dr. Desantis later and see if I can find out what she really knows."

The next thing Maria knew her Mother had finished and the room erupted into applause as she stepped off the podium. Maria hurried forward to give her a hug. Her mother breathed a huge sigh of relief as she held Maria close. "I'm so glad that's over. Okay, where's the champagne? I need a huge glass or maybe just the bottle."

Senator Kent approached them smiling with her hand outstretched. "That was an excellent speech Dr. Desantis." She said warmly, "I can tell you share my passion for children."

"Thank you Senator Kent, please call me Kate," she said with a smile. "I'd like you to meet my daughter Maria." As Maria stepped forward to shake hands she saw Clark appear at his Mother's side. Martha introduced him to Kate and Maria.

"It's nice to meet you Dr. Desantis," Clark said as he gently took her hand. Maria watched in amusement as her Mom flushed and stared at Clark in stunned admiration.

"Clark." Kate said, and she turned to Maria. "Isn't this the young man you told me about?" Now it was Maria's turn to blush.

"Yes Mom." She said quietly, trying to signal with her eyes, don't, don't say it! Aack, too late.

"Maria has told me such wonderful things about you Clark." She turned to Martha "Your son is quite the hero Senator; I think Maria's got a bit of a crush on him."

Martha smiled. "Thank you Kate and please call me Martha." She looked curiously over at Clark. "Hero…what happened?"

Clark gave her a sheepish grin. He hadn't wanted to tell her about his brush with death at the river, she had enough to worry about as it was. "I'll tell you later Mom." Martha looked at him concerned, and then nodded.

Maria wanted to sink into the ground. She looked apologetically at Clark. Could it get any worse? Apparently it could. Her mother turned to her and said "You're right Maria. He is very handsome." And Kate smiled happily at a now blushing Clark.

Maria wanted to cheer when the band started up loudly, drowning out any possibility of further humiliation. "I'd like to steal your Mother for a minute Maria," Martha called loudly over the music, "there are some people I'd like her to meet." then she and Kate walked away, talking with their heads bent close to hear each other over the band.

Maria looked at Clark and wondered what to do now. Talk about an awkward moment, at least the worst was over. Then out of the corner of her eye Maria saw Dr Steiner approaching. He was the head of her Mom's project and Maria had met him when she came to take her Mom to lunch on her first day of work. The man had stared at her in a way that made her extremely uncomfortable, letting his eyes wander over her body and smiling in a predatory way when she blushed. Now he was walking towards her with his eyes locked on hers and that same smile.

She had a sudden horrible thought. What if he asks me to dance? He had hinted at that earlier in the evening and she thought she had let him know she wasn't interested. He was her Mom's superior and she didn't have a clue how to handle him. She just wanted to get away.

"Dance with me now Clark!" Maria said suddenly with a desperate tone in her voice. "Please!"

Clark smiled at her, puzzled. "I… um…"

Maria grabbed him and pulled him out onto the dance floor, placing one hand on his shoulder and taking his other hand in hers. "If you don't dance with me now Dr. Steiner will. He works with my Mom and the man is horrible. He's heading my way and he looks like he won't take no for an answer. Please Clark? Could we please just dance?"

Clark smiled and pulled her closer, moving her smoothly across the dance floor. "So, I'm your protection?" He asked, quirking one eyebrow at her.

"My hero," murmured Maria, looking up into his eyes with a grin.

Clark was enjoying this. When he saw Maria he'd hoped they might get to talk but this was much better. Her deep blue silk dress clung to her body and felt amazing under his hands. She smelled lightly of jasmine combined with a spicy scent that was unique to her alone. Maria's hair was braided and twisted up on her head to expose her long, graceful neck and beautiful bare shoulders. Clark looked down into her eyes and noticed she was taller than any girl he'd ever danced with, not that he'd danced with very many but in her heels they were almost eye to eye. Kissing her would take the barest tilt of the head and he wondered what she would do if he tried it.

They moved together well, Maria following along with him effortlessly, her body shifting and changing direction almost like she could read his thoughts. It made him feel confident with his dancing and let him relax even though they were in a crowd. Clark always had to be careful in crowds, he didn't want to have anyone bump into him and hurt themselves. Maria shifted closer and he found himself slipping his arm around her waist and drawing her up tight against him.

She could feel the warmth of his body through the silky suit and he smelled so good, shampoo and soap and cologne and something else she responded to without thought. She put her hand on his shoulder and leaned into him, swaying to the beat of the music, moving her body in synch with his. Her eyes were on a level with his lips and she looked at them and thought about what it would be like to be kissed by him.

The song stopped and the band switched to a sultry, slow number. Clark looked into Maria's eyes. "Do you want to stop? I think your stalker's gone." He asked reluctantly.

" Hmmmm. Nope." murmured Maria in a low voice, "I think we should keep dancing just in case." She tilted her head and looked at him with a dreamy, soft expression that changed as she said "unless you don't want to, after all I dragged you out here. You didn't ask me to dance." Clark felt her body tense and she pushed away from him a little. Her expression had become guarded.

He pulled her up against him and wrapped both arms lightly around her waist, caressing her back gently with his hands. "I want to. Maria would you like to dance?" he asked softly.

Maria snuggled in against him and pressed her body close. She slid both arms up around his shoulders and rested her head in the crook of his neck. "Yes, I'd love to." she whispered in his ear.

To be continued…


	6. Chapter 6

To those of you who encouraged me with a review: Thank you!

To everyone: **Merry Christmas!!!**

Chapter Six

Lois scanned the people gathered around where the food was, looking for Clark. Jimmy and Chloe had gone off to take photos and interview people for the Planet and she was feeling bored and abandoned. Somehow mentioning the Inquisitor wasn't getting her the interviews she hoped for. Well I'll just pick on Smallville for awhile before I try for that interview with Dr. Desantis. He's probably standing by the food feeling awkward anyway. Maybe he could make himself useful and get me something to eat. Lois didn't spot him right away so she let her eyes wander over the crowded room. When she found Clark her jaw dropped open in surprise.

Jimmy worked his way around the ballroom snapping pictures. He was hopeful he might even come up with some they'd print this time. Maybe even on the cover of the "Local" section. This charity ball was big news after all. He noticed people had started dancing and moved in that direction. Peering through the camera he zoomed in on couples and suddenly he froze. That couldn't be Clark could it? Who was that beautiful woman wrapped up in his arms? Jimmy lowered the camera and stared in surprise then broke into a delighted smile and lifted the camera back up to snap a picture. Way to go CK, he thought.

Chloe was talking with a group of women about their work raising funds for the hospital's improvements. It would be good to have a picture of these ladies, she thought, and she started looking around for Jimmy. When she found him she noticed he was staring at something and she followed his gaze to Clark, dancing, with a girl she'd never met. Her eyes opened wide at what she saw next and her first thought was, has Clark been exposed to red-K?

Maria relaxed in Clark's arms. She rested against him and let her body move with his while her mind floated peacefully in a haze of contentment. She could stay like this forever and that would be fine with her. She could feel his warm hands touching her, one on her waist and the other hand was softly stroking her back. Usually, on the rare occasions she had slow danced with a guy, she had been forced to pay attention to where their hands wandered and lay down some boundaries. Somehow, with Clark she knew that constant vigilance would not be necessary, he wouldn't go anywhere he wasn't invited, not that she wasn't thinking about inviting him sometime. Maria smiled and her eyes drifted closed as she felt his cheek rest lightly against her forehead.

Clark couldn't remember when he had last felt this good. Holding Maria close felt natural and right. He could feel her body melt into his and as her breathing calmed and her heartbeat slowed he felt his own body relaxing. He'd been under so much pressure this year and the weight seemed to keep piling on with no relief in sight but right now, in this moment, he was just here with Maria. Nothing else existed. Clark rested his cheek against her forehead, letting his eyes close for a moment.

The music stopped and the band announced it would be taking a break. Clark and Maria didn't notice the change at first but Clark looked up and stopped dancing when he noticed the nearly empty floor. Then he looked down at Maria. "I think the music's over for a while. Do you want something to eat?" he said softly.

Maria looked up at him like she was coming back into the world. She looked into his eyes and then her eyes dropped to his lips that were so close to her own. "Not really." She murmured, "Thank you for the dance." and then she smiled softly up at him. Her sweet smile and the way she was still leaning into him encouraged him and he kissed her without thought, as the most natural thing in the world.

It started as a sweet kiss, soft and gentle, sending a shiver up Maria's spine followed by a rush of heat that swept over her body. Maria responded by sliding her fingers into his hair and kissing him back. Clark deepened the kiss and Maria made a little sound of pleasure and opened her mouth to him, allowing him to explore as he wished. Clark's hands had moved up her back and now he held her tightly to him as he kissed her slowly and very thoroughly.

When he broke the kiss Maria had to cling to him to remain upright. Her knees felt like water and her heart was pounding. She needed a moment to catch her breath, it was coming out in little pants and she had to concentrate on taking a deep breath to calm down. "Wow," she said with a smile, a little embarrassed by her reaction. "I think I need to sit down before I fall down."

Clark needed a moment to regain his composure as well. His heart was thundering and he felt light headed. He grinned at Maria, "You're not the only one" and he guided them over to some nearby chairs. "Would you like something to drink?" he asked.

Maria nodded "Sparkling cider please Clark, thanks."

Clark was getting some sparkling cider for Maria and a Coke for himself when he heard a voice behind him say "So, who's the new flame Smallville? " Clark turned around to see Lois standing there with an odd expression on her face. For a moment she almost seemed jealous but Clark knew that couldn't be right. "and what's with the PDA? I thought you had to pine over a girl for years before you made your move for a kiss."

Clark turned red and Lois was delighted. "Well Lois, It just seemed like the thing to do at the time. She certainly didn't complain" He managed to say, trying for a confident, devil-may-care tone as he grinned down at Lois. Her mouth dropped open and she racked her brain for a response to this surprising new Clark Kent.

Before she had time to say anything Jimmy showed up. "Wow, Ck, I didn't know you had it in you!" and he slapped Clark on the back, then looked at his hand and rubbed it a bit.

"A lot of that going around" said Clark, looking at Lois.

"So who is this beautiful mystery woman, and do we get to meet her?" asked Jimmy.

"Her name is Maria Desantis and of course I'll introduce you." answered Clark happily.

Clark turned to walk back to Maria, drinks in hand, nearly walking into Chloe.

"Did you just say that her name is Maria Desantis?" asked Chloe looking worried "Lex's new pet scientist's daughter?"

"Hi Chloe! Careful, I almost gave you a bath." Clark grinned "Yes, her Mom works for Lex but don't let her hear you call her his pet. She's pretty protective of her Mom." Clark started to walk away. "Come on, I want you to meet her."

Chloe walked next to Clark, Jimmy followed and Lois hesitated then hurried to catch up. Grabbing his arm Chloe leaned in and whispered for Clark's ears only. "Are you sure you know what you're doing? Lex isn't trying to get at you is he?"

Clark looked at Chloe in surprise. "No Chloe. It's not like that at all" He smiled "believe me, I know Maria well enough to know she isn't working for Lex."

"Are you sure Clark? I mean, her Mom is a scientist, I wouldn't want you to wind up as her next lab rat." Chloe looked really worried and Clark found it annoying that she trusted his judgment so little. Still, he knew she meant well and he admitted it looked bad on the surface.

"Honest, Chloe, It's going to be fine. Just meet her. You'll see."

Maria closed her eyes and allowed herself to relive the past few moments. My God, that was some kiss, she thought, smiling to herself. A quiet voice interrupted her daydream "It's supposed to be a party. I'm sorry you find it so boring it puts you to sleep." Maria' s eyes popped open and she jumped a bit in her chair. "Mr. Luthor!" She exclaimed, "I'm sorry, I'm not bored, really. I was just resting a minute."

Lex smiled a knowing smile "Ah…well, that's understandable. How long have you known Clark Kent?"

Maria stared at him in surprise. She had the awful feeling he knew exactly what she had been thinking about. "I beg your pardon?" She said quietly, confused. Why would her mother's boss give a lick about who she danced with?

"I asked how long you've known Clark" Lex smiled at her with his mouth closed, his eyes were boring into hers as though he wanted to rip the answers out of her.

Maria remembered the day she met Clark and how he had warned her about Lex. The hairs on her neck stood up and she responded as vaguely as possible. "Oh, we met at the Talon a few days ago. I don't know him well at all."

Lex looked disappointed, "Well you certainly looked close on the dance floor."

Maria blushed, flustered, and then answered him abruptly. "Look, I don't know what this is about but even though you own the company my Mother works for you don't own me. So who I dance with is none of your concern."

Lex smiled again, a slow smile that didn't touch his eyes. "Calm down, I was just making conversation; excuse me; I should go check on my other guests." He held out his hand, "It was nice to meet you, Maria." Maria thought about not taking his hand but decided that would be too rude so she placed her hand in his very lightly. Lex grabbed her hand and brought it to his lips. "Until we meet again." he said with a smirk.

Maria saw his eyes travel over her shoulder and his smile widened. Then he dropped her hand, turned and sauntered away. Maria let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding and turned around to see who Lex had been looking at. She saw Clark standing there with the people he had been talking to earlier. Maria gasped at the look on Clark's face. He looked pale and sick; the look in his eyes was so sad it brought tears to hers. "Clark, what's wrong?" she asked softly with her face full of concern.

Clark felt stunned and for a moment he couldn't catch his breath. The sight of Lex, with his lips against Maria's hand felt like a blow to his heart. Lex's gloating smile just made it worse, like he knew something Clark didn't. Did Maria know Lex? What had they been talking about so intimately? Clark swallowed and tried to answer Maria's question in a normal tone of voice. He couldn't bring himself to look her in the eyes as he said "I'm fine Maria. I just wanted to introduce you to my friends." And he smiled unconvincingly then turned away from her to gesture at them and bring them forward.

Maria stood up and went to Clark, trying to catch his eye but he was looking at Chloe. "Maria, this is Chloe, Jimmy and Lois, my good friends." He turned to gesture to her "This is Maria." and he looked in her eyes now but his look was distant, as if he was looking at a stranger and even his smile left Maria with a cold feeling in her stomach that she couldn't understand. She shook hands with his friends in a haze and said polite things but her mind was on Clark and puzzling out what was bothering him.

After a few minutes of strained conversation Lois excused herself asking Maria, "Do you think your Mom would mind doing an interview with me?"

Maria studied Lois. In spite of her first impression that she was rude and inconsiderate Maria found herself drawn to Lois and enjoyed her tendency to speak her mind honestly without censoring it. "No she wouldn't mind, in fact, I think she would like you. Do you want me to make introductions?"

"I'm fine." stated Lois, "there isn't a shy bone in my body. You stay here and dance with Clark, God knows he needs the practice."

Chloe and Jimmy also excused themselves. "We're here to work. We should make an effort to do something." said Chloe, looking at Clark with concern before she turned to walk away with Jimmy.

Left alone with Maria, Clark avoided her eyes again and started to make excuses of his own to leave. "Clark, before you go I want to say I really enjoyed spending time with you tonight." and Maria reached out and took his hands. "I wish you'd tell me what's wrong, and don't say nothing, you're a terrible liar." Clark just looked at her. How could he explain the way Lex made him feel?

"Also Clark, I don't know why, or what has gone on between you and Lex but he sure seems interested in knowing all about you and it doesn't seem like friendly interest to me."

"Is that what you were talking about?" asked Clark. "Yes," she said with a shiver, "and it was weird but when he kissed my hand it was more like an attack on you than a kiss for me, if that makes any sense."

"It makes perfect sense," said Clark with a look of relief on his face. Then he smiled at Maria and it was like the sun breaking through the clouds. "I'm going to have to leave soon, we get up early on the farm, but I want to see you again. Would you like to go out, um, next Friday, maybe?"

Maria grinned at Clark. "Yes!" she said a little too loudly. Maria cleared her throat, way to lay hard to get, she thought, and then continued in a more calm voice. "What time would you like me to be ready?"

Clark noticed his Mom signaling she was ready to go. He nodded then looked back at Maria "Seven o'clock okay?"

"That would be great Clark." Maria replied, I bet I'm still grinning like a fool, she thought, not exactly keeping my cool here. "I can't wait." And Clark kissed her again, a light, gentle kiss that melted her where she stood. Then he left with his mother. Maria went and found her chair again. "Wow." She murmured quietly.

To be continued…


	7. Chapter 7

Well? Do you like it so far? Yes? Good, here's some more…

Stars and Water

Chapter seven

Friday night took forever to come, but it wasn't as though they both weren't busy. Maria had started a job at the Talon, one of the few places in town that was hiring. She'd walked in to inquire about an opening and after they found out she knew how to make the espresso machine cooperate, she walked out with a full-time job working the morning shift.

She was also checking out local Colleges and seeing about transferring her credits from the University of Oregon. She didn't think she'd be able to start in the fall but it was helping her regain her focus just looking at the pamphlets.

Since last New Years Eve she had been coping with whatever the day threw at her and avoiding thoughts of the future. Lately, since she had met Clark, she felt like a fog had lifted. New Years Eve was the last night she had felt safe, like nothing bad could ever happen to her. It was also the last night she would ever tell someone good bye and feel sure she would see them again. That night her father had gone out late to get ice cream to eat while they stayed up to watch the ball drop on TV. He'd only made it six blocks before he got hit by a drunken driver.

Maria still couldn't come to grips with the senselessness of it. There was no grand meaning or lesson she could find. One moment her Dad was alive and the next he was gone and Maria was left feeling like she was still waiting for him to bring the ice cream.

Meeting Clark had been a turning point for her. She had been getting better and better at seeing beauty and joy around her again and then, there he was and her heart felt like it was thawed out at last.

Finally it was Friday! She sang to herself as she hopped in the shower after work. Of course she also sang to Nick who kept pounding on the bathroom door to ask if she was ready to play yet. Maria hoped her Mom would come home soon, getting ready for a date while watching Nick was going to be challenging.

Clark had also had a busy week. The farm wasn't the only thing that took his time. He and Chloe had traced a Phantom to Seattle and he had nearly died defeating it. Clark was still in a daze from the experience. Someone who could do things he couldn't had shown up and saved his life and then just left, flying.

He was looking forward to a nice, simple date with Maria. She made him feel happy in a way he hadn't felt for a long time. He hopped in his spotlessly clean truck and headed for her house, remembering with a smile the last time she had been in his truck.

Katherine Desantis was hurrying to get out of the lab on time. Her daughter Maria was going on the first date she'd been on in nearly a year and the last thing she wanted was to make her late. Kate was impressed with the Kent boy. He was polite and respectful along with being extremely handsome. He had also been raised by an amazing woman. She'd watched Clark's interaction with his Mother with keen interest. Kate had always said you can tell a lot about how a man will treat his wife by watching how he treats his Mom. They were obviously close and he behaved toward her with a loving, protective air she found refreshing. She had a really good feeling about this young man. She grabbed her coat and turned to the door only to come face to face with Lex Luthor.

"Mr. Luthor!" Kate was startled to see him standing in the door with a pleasant smile on his face; she had met him at the ball but hadn't ever seen him in the lab before.

"Dr. Desantis," he said, stepping into the room. "I'm so glad you're still here. I have something of great importance to discuss with you." Kate couldn't help herself, she glanced at the clock.

"I have an offer I would like to make to you. Something, ah, unexpected, has happened in another department in the lab and I will need you to take over a very special project for me. If you will follow me I believe it would be best to show you what I mean rather than explain it."

Kate reluctantly followed Lex from the room. Maybe this would be quick?

Kate followed Lex down a long hallway, past a secure door marked 33.1 guarded by two armed men, and into a wing of the lab that she didn't know existed. Lex walked up to a long window that opened onto what looked like a children's hospital room. Looking through the window Kate saw children in a range of ages, from a baby to what appeared to be a pre-teen, laying on hospital beds. She noticed they were restrained and wondered why.

"These are the descendents of what we call meteor infected individuals. You have seen the results of meteor rock exposure on human DNA. These specimens have inherited their parent's unique genetic abnormalities." Lex said, as though he were speaking of the most mundane thing.

Kate was shocked into interrupting. "You mean those abnormal human cells we were examining were taken from people who have been mutated by the meteor rocks? I thought the cells had been exposed in the lab! Where are the people the cells came from? Are they being held against their will here too?"

"I understand your surprise. I forgot you were new to Smallville." Lex looked at her and his lip curled in contempt. What a naïve woman she was. "We have been working with many subjects who have developed unusual abilities due to the meteor rocks. This project, which you will be heading, is titled Project Generation and we shall be exploring the potential of the offspring of those subjects."

Kate felt ill. "By "exploring the potential" I'm assuming you mean conducting experiments on these children you so callously refer to as specimens?" She was shaking with anger now and her voice lashed out as she continued. "I don't know what I have done to make you think I would approve of this, much less be in charge of it. I must tell you, I resign my position working for your company as of right now and I will be pursuing legal action against you. This cannot possibly be legal."

Lex smiled wider at the threat, decent people were so predictable. "I believe you might want to consider the welfare of your children before refusing my offer of advancement. Young lives are so fragile and it's hard to watch them every minute."

Kate's mouth fell open as she stared at Lex in shock. "You dare to threaten my children? If you ever harm either of them no security team on this planet will keep you safe from me." Her fists were clenched and her voice had dropped to a growl.

Lex took an involuntary step back before he composed himself and replied calmly. "That is an easy threat to make but are you willing to bet your children's lives on your ability to protect them from me? I will give you until tomorrow to accept my offer. Choose carefully." And he spoke into a communication device on his lapel. "I need someone to escort Dr. Desantis out to her car; she is late to go home." Then Lex turned and left without looking at her again.

Maria was having a difficult time getting ready. Nick had followed her with nonstop questions throughout the entire evening. "Where are you going? Who are you going with? Who's Clark Kent? Does he have any little brothers? Can I come with you…" She looked at the clock again. She wanted her Mom. Not just to distract Nick but also for advice. She found herself, out of desperation, actually asking him which blouse he liked best and was surprised when he picked the same green one she was leaning towards. Then he ruined it by adding that it looked like a frog's skin.

Where are you Mom? Clark is going to be here in five minutes and I don't have a top on. I don't think I'm ready for that stage of our relationship yet. She brushed her teeth, again, and looked at the clock. AACK, that was the doorbell! She grabbed the red knit shirt and ran into the living room while pulling it over her head. Then she yanked her hair out of the collar, flipping it loose over her shoulders, straightened the bottom with a tug and flung open the door, startling Clark in the process of knocking in case the doorbell didn't work.

"Hi!" she said breathlessly "Wont you come in?" Maria stepped back to allow Clark room to enter and tripped over one of Nick's toy cars. As she started to fall Clark moved quickly and caught her, pulling her close and holding her until she regained her balance. "Thanks," she said smiling up at him and blushing furiously. "That was one of my more graceful moves. For an encore I do a header over the couch." Clark laughed and kissed her lightly before letting her go.

A high voice broke in "Hi, are you Clark? I'm Nickolas. I'm three!" and Clark looked down to see a dark haired boy grinning up at him from close to knee level.

Clark crouched down and held out his hand "Yes, I'm Clark. Good to meet you Nickolas." Nick stared at Clark's hand and then remembering what to do he proudly placed his tiny hand in Clark's large one and shook hands.

"I like you." Nick declared, grinning.

"I like you too, Nick" said Clark with a smile.

Nick looked up at Maria with his face glowing. "He shook my hand Maria, like men do!" Maria smiled back, watching as Clark and Nick carried on a conversation ranging from Nick's favorite thing to eat to whether a motorcycle was cooler than a race car.

After a few minutes Clark stood back up, "Hey Buddy, I need to spend some time with Maria but I promise I'll play with you later. Okay?" Nick's face fell but he perked back up at the mention of getting to play with Clark and he ran to his room to get his favorite toys out.

"I'm sorry Clark. We can't leave yet. My Mom's not home and I can't leave Nick alone." Maria said, her voice sounding strained with frustration and embarrassment.

"That's okay Maria, I understand. Of course you can't just leave Nick." Clark smiled reassuringly. "Where is your Mom? Is everything okay?"

"She's at work and she's late but that's nothing new." There was a little bitterness in Maria's tone now. "She hasn't called but that's not unusual either, when she gets an idea and starts following it the world ceases to exist and it could be hours before she comes up for a breath and remembers she has children." Maria looked at the surprise on Clark's face. "That sounded awful." said Maria, "I really am proud of her and her amazing mind. Normally I'm not bothered by her time schedule. It's just, she knew this was important to me and she blew it off, it's disappointing."

Clark reached out to Maria and pulled her into a hug. "It's okay Maria. We can still have a good time right here. I'll order a Pizza and we can watch a video or something. It'll be fine." Then he kissed her forehead and smiled into her eyes. "I just want to spend time with you."

Maria smiled back. "Thanks Clark." And she leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder and breathing in the spicy masculine smell that was Clark Kent. She felt her shoulders easing down as the tension flowed out of them.

"Okay, I'm ready!" a high voice interrupted, "Anybody who wants to play with me gets to!"

Clark chuckled and shrugged at Maria. "How can I resist?" he asked.

Maria grinned "I'll order the pizza, you two have fun." Clark followed a very excited Nick to his room.

As Maria ordered the Pizza she could hear Nick's high voice chattering and the occasional low tones of Clark answering him. She smiled as she heard them both laughing. Maria set the table and put together a Caesar salad to go with the pizza. Just as she was finishing it the doorbell rang and Clark hurried to get the food with Nick running beside him.

They sat down together to eat and Nick offered to pray. He tucked his head down and squeezed his eyes tight. "God is great, God is good, and we thank him for our food. Thank you, God. Amen."

Clark smiled at Maria across the table then turned to Nick. "Good job, Buddy. That's the same prayer I learned when I was little." Nick beamed.

By the time dinner was over Nick was drooping noticeably and rubbing his eyes. Maria looked at the clock, still no word from her Mom. "Well, I think a bath and bed are what this little guy needs next." She stated, and to her surprise Nick didn't even quarrel, he just yawned. "Make yourself at home Clark, this wont take long." And she scooped Nick up and carried him to the bathroom.

Clark cleaned up from dinner and then began to look around at Maria's home. It was a small space but felt open and peaceful, decorated with original paintings and filled with shelves of books. Clark realized as he looked around that he couldn't see a TV. There was a piano, two guitars, a computer in the corner and an aquarium, but no television. I guess we won't be watching a video after all, Clark thought.

Maria came quietly back into the room. "He's asleep, thank goodness. If I had to read "Good Night Moon" one more time I would have been asleep too. She walked up to Clark and took his hands, smiling warmly up into his eyes. "What shall we do now?" she murmured.

Kate sat in her car. She was shaking so hard she didn't trust herself to drive. Tears poured unnoticed down her face as she kept going over what had just happened, trying to find a way out, some way to make her life calm and normal again. After a time she took a deep breath, wiped her face and set her jaw. "You will not get away with this Lex Luthor" she said, her voice low and teeth clenched.

I have to stop this somehow, she thought. It wasn't just about her and her family. The sight of the children in that room haunted her. I have to think of something. She rested her head on the dashboard running various scenarios through her mind, calmly assessing the risks and possibility for success of each. An idea came to her and after thinking it through carefully she decided it was the best course of action. She sat up and let out a breath, rubbing her forehead. "Maria!" Oh no what time was it? Kate looked at her watch and grabbed her cell phone.

Clark looked at Maria's lovely face tilted up to him so invitingly. Then he whispered into her ear, "I'm sure we can think of something." and he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her up tight to his long, lean body while he trailed light kisses down her jaw, ending at her mouth.

Maria leaned into Clark and wrapped her arms around his neck burying her hands in his silky dark hair. As he deepened the kiss she gave a little moan and shivered. They moved a few feet to the couch and Clark gently eased Maria down onto the cushions before lowering himself next to her. He bent forward to kiss her again and as his lips met hers the phone rang.

Chloe was perched on the edge of her chair at the Daily Planet writing. Her fingers flew over the keys as she worked on her story. The chaos in the room didn't distract her at all as she focused intently on putting the final touches to this draft before she submitted it to the editor. The cell phone balanced on Chloe's desk rang and she jumped.

The voice on the other end surprised her. "Oliver? What's going on?" Chloe's eyes widened. "Oh my God! That's a new low even for Lex. Have you called Clark?" she frowned at his answer then remembered Clark's date. "Oh, um he's busy tonight, he probably turned it off." And he won't appreciate me interrupting, thought Chloe, remembering Clark's beaming smile as he told Chloe of the evening he had planned. "I'll let him know. Yes, as soon as possible. That's just so horrible. Let me know any other way I can help." Chloe set the cell phone down slowly. "Project Generation" sounded like something from a nightmare.

Kate listened to the phone ring. Surely they were home? Finally Maria answered breathlessly. "Have you been running sweetie? I'm so sorry I didn't come home when I promised but something came up at work and I couldn't leave. I'll tell you about it when I get home. I'm on my way home now. I'll be there in about twenty minutes. I love you." Kate couldn't speak for a moment past the lump in her throat. "Goodbye Sweetheart."

Maria walked back to Clark who was sprawled across her couch with his arms folded behind his head. He looked up at her and smiled sweetly. "Was that your Mom?" Maria looked at his long body barely fitting on her couch. He looked irresistible in his kaki pants and deep blue shirt unbuttoned at the neck. She wanted to pounce on him but sat down next to him instead. She brushed the hair out of his face with her hand, touching his cheek for a moment. He wasn't making what she was about to say any easier. His eyes closed at her touch and then he opened them and gazed intently into hers.

"Yes it was my Mom, she'll be here in twenty minutes." Maria said softly, worry putting little frown lines between her brows. "Something is really bothering her Clark. I could swear she was crying. I know this night hasn't been what either of us planned and when she comes home we could go out but…" Maria looked away, hesitating to continue.

Clark sat up. "You want to stay home and talk to your Mom." He said. "I understand. We can go out another night. I did have a nice time and I'm glad I got to meet Nick." Clark smiled at her reassuringly. "We have lots of time to get to know each other."

Maria smiled gratefully at Clark. "You understand." She said, relieved. Thank you, Clark. You're amazing." And she put her arms around him and kissed him. A long, slow, deep, lingering kiss that threatened to erase all thought of leaving from his mind. Clark shifted on the couch, wrapped his arms around her and passionately returned the kiss; sliding his hands up under her shirt to rest them on the warm skin of her back. "You should probably go." She murmured against his lips.

"I probably should," he breathed as he kissed her again. Clark hadn't felt this close to anyone in a long time. He wanted to keep on kissing Maria all night, slide off her shirt, feel her naked skin against his and…suddenly he felt hot, really hot, and his eyes started to burn. Clark abruptly pulled away from Maria breathing deeply.

He couldn't believe this was happening; he'd had this under control for years! Think about football he thought, think about the tractor, think about anything but Maria, naked. He felt the wave of heat pass and he gave her a sheepish smile. "I'm never going to be able to leave if you keep kissing me like that."

Maria looked at Clark, confused by his sudden movement away from her and light headed from the kiss. Then she grinned as what he said penetrated the fog in her brain, "I wanted to give you something to remember me by until we can go out again." She said.

Clark stood up and then reached down to help her up. "I'm not likely to ever forget you." He said softly. They walked to her door, hand in hand, and shared one last kiss in the doorway before Clark turned and headed for his truck. Maria stood in the door and watched him go.

To be continued…


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter eight

Clark was smiling as he drove away, the effects of their last kiss a lingering dream. When he came back to reality he groaned. What was he doing? He was just setting himself up for the same problems he had with Lana. Maria was amazing and now he was going to have to lie to her as she got closer to him. Add to that he seriously desired her, but where could that go? He still didn't know what would happen with his powers. Besides he couldn't get physically intimate with someone and hide such a large part of who he was, it wouldn't be right.

He'd wanted to take her, right there on the couch. Of course he wouldn't have. He wasn't that kind of guy and he was pretty sure she would have stopped him; still, the feelings were there. What was with his heat vision acting up? That was just what he needed.

He couldn't do this. He would have to break things off with her now before they got any closer and it hurt more, not that it didn't hurt a lot, right now, just thinking about it. Maria made him so happy, it felt right being with her. He decided to call Chloe. Maybe she could think of something.

When Clark pulled out his cell phone he saw he had a lot of missed calls, two from Oliver and many more from Chloe. Uh oh, this couldn't be good. Clark pressed the speed dial for Chloe and she picked up on the first ring. He listened in appalled silence to what she told him then managed to choke out, "I'll be right there." Clark felt sick as he thought about what his former friend Lex had become.

Maria leaned on the door frame and let out a sigh. What a sweet, amazing, beautiful guy, she thought. I am so lucky. She floated back into the house to wait for her Mom. Concern brought her back to earth as she wondered what had made her usually tough Mother cry.

When Kate walked in the door Maria's concern grew into real fear. Her mother was pale and shaking. She walked into her own home as though she'd never seen it before and stood looking around, dazed. How could everything look so normal with such evil looming over them? She finally looked at Maria and her eyes filled with tears again. Kate blinked them back and let anger flow over her to replace the fear. How dare Lex threaten her family. Kate gave Maria a fierce hug. "Honey we need to talk about something really important."

When Kate finished telling Maria everything that had happened at the lab with Lex she went on to fill her in on her decision. "Mom, that's too dangerous. Can't we just go to the police?" Maria asked. Now she was as pale as her mother and she felt sick and angry. Surely the authorities should handle this.

"With his vast resources and connections Lex could easily evade the police." Said Kate "Maybe they could stop him eventually but by then who knows what would become of those children. Believe me Maria, I've thought this through and it's the only way. First the children need to be out of danger, and then we can see about the police."

"I'm going to help you." Said Maria, determined.

"No, I'm sending you with Nick to your aunt Nora's in Eugene. You'll be safer there." replied Kate, equally determined.

"Mom, I'm not a child and you need my help. Have Nora come get Nick and take him to safety but let me stay with you." Maria was not going to give up on this. "You can't do this alone, it'll never work."

They sat in silence a moment then Kate sighed. "Okay, I hate to admit it but you're right. I do need your help. Now, since I don't think either of us is going to fall asleep any time soon, let's sit down and plan this carefully. We should do this as soon as possible, tomorrow night hopefully, and we can't afford to overlook anything."

Clark and Chloe were bent over her laptop and talking to Oliver on speaker phone. "Okay, so we should do this tomorrow night. I've got my end arranged; can you handle yours Boy Scout?"

"Chloe and I have it under control." answered Clark looking to Chloe, who nodded. He severed the connection with Oliver and said to Chloe, who was rubbing her eyes, "We'd better get a little sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a long night."

To be continued…

Yes, I know it's short but I promise to post more very soon! I'm just doing a little clean up on it.


	9. Chapter 9

See, I didn't make you wait long at all. Thank you for the reviews. It helps to know people are reading and enjoying my story! To answer the question about Chloe, my story is a little AU and set before Chloe found out she was infected so that doesn't come up. ( I love Chloe and her power, it just isn't in here) Hope you all like this update!

Stars and Water

Chapter nine

Getting in had been easy. Kate had simply shown up for work, meekly told Lex she would do anything he wanted, restrained herself from wiping the satisfied smirk off his face with her fist and walked into 33.1.

Later in the evening when most of the personnel had gone home she passed out fresh brownies to the security team. Since she already had a reputation as a nice lady who brought treats this raised no eyebrows. Soon all the guards were slumped over enjoying a nap and she proceeded to shut down the security cameras. They were already off.

That was odd, she thought. Oh well, not one to argue with luck she ran to the door and let Maria in.

Chloe sat in the van with Clark and they went over the layout of the building together. "Okay Clark, the security cameras are disabled." said Chloe, clicking madly on her computer "Time to go in. I'll bring the Van up to the loading dock and wait for you to bring the kids out. Be careful." Clark nodded and with a rush of wind he disappeared.

Maria and Kate released the children and gathered them into a group. The older ones understood the situation and helped to get the younger ones organized. Maria couldn't help staring as one of the children hovered six inches above the ground and another played with the sparks that flew from his finger tips. Kate saw her expression, "That's nothing she said. "I watched film footage today of people who could walk through walls and bend steel. It's amazing" she smiled at Maria's expression of wonder. "Come on we'd better get moving before the brownies wear off." They headed out of the room and into the hall with Maria leading the way.

Maria ran to the security door and pulled but it wouldn't budge. Wrapping both hands around the handle she tried again and suddenly with a loud grinding crash, the door was yanked right off it's hinges, with Maria in the air, dangling from the handle.

Before she could let go she felt herself flung through the air along with the heavy metal door. Maria was confused. She couldn't imagine what had just happened. Time seemed to stop as she felt herself sailing down the hallway and saw the wall coming at her. She realized she was about to be crushed between the door and the wall.

Suddenly Clark was there beside her. He caught the door and set it down gently. Then he caught her as she slumped to the floor. Maria struggled to stand up and Clark set her on her feet. He looked into her eyes, concerned "Are you okay?" He asked.

Clark was horrified. He'd barely had time to stop Maria from being crushed by the door he'd tossed. If he hadn't caught a glimpse of her dark hair and turned to look it would have killed her. Clark shuddered at the thought. Now she had seen him use his powers. What was she going to think? How could he explain it?

Maria stared at him, speechless, trying to process what she had just seen, then realized he had asked her a question and answered breathlessly "I'm okay. Clark how did you…that was a solid steel door and you…" her voice trailed off at the expression in his eyes, fear. Clark was afraid of her? Maria heard voices and looked up to see her Mom come through the doorway with the kids.

It was Clark's turn to look amazed.

"We have to go now!" Kate called, "come help me with the kids." Maria and Clark hurried to help. Maria lifted up the smallest girl, a tiny waif, not quite three years old. Clark grabbed two children in his arms, twin boys who climbed up Clark like he was a tree and then hung on tight. "I'll lead, everyone stick close together." Said Kate, carrying the baby, "Maria honey, you come last and make sure there are no stragglers."

Kate looked at Clark "Maybe you could lead the way and open any locked doors." She arched one eyebrow at him then turned to the children. "Let's go!" and the group hurried down the hallway towards the side exit where they had their rental van parked.

"I hear someone coming!" Clark whispered loudly. "We have to get out of this corridor." Kate and Maria looked at him oddly, they didn't hear anything. "Just trust me on this." Said Clark, and they turned down another hallway and hurried through a maze of halls and doors trying to find the one that led outside.

When they found the door they needed it was locked. Kate gestured to Clark and he gave the door a light push with his shoulder. It fell flat on the ground. Kate smiled and nodded at him. "Thank you Clark" she said, as if he had simply held the door open for her. Maria looked at her mother and then at Clark, how could she be so calm about this? It was as if she had seen other people who could do amazing things and just took it for granted. Then she realized that her Mother had seen just that, in the lab, and Maria thought she knew why Clark looked so scared.

The little girl Maria was holding took that moment of distraction to wiggle out of her arms. Mentioning the word "potty" she took off back inside with Maria in hot pursuit.

Outside near the door Chloe was sitting in a large black van, motor running, and ready to blast off at a moment's notice. Near her was another van, the one Kate had rented, with cash, under another name.

"Where were you going to take the children?" asked Clark as they stepped outside.

"To a friend of mine who works for children's services. Why?" said Kate, pausing on the way to her van.

"Lex has all kinds of connections. He'll get them back." stated Clark. "I have a friend who's made arrangements for a private plane to meet us and he's already tracking down the children's parents, those that are alive and still at liberty. We'll reunite all that we can and he'll find homes for the others. They will never be found by Lex."

Kate looked at Clark and nodded, impressed with this young man and his compassionate friends. "We will load the children in your van." she said, "Maria and I will leave in ours and if anyone follows we will try to lead them astray." She smiled at Clark.

Clark was helping load kids in the van and explaining to Chloe as much as he could about what had happened when he heard Kate say "Where's Maria?" He looked up to see the child Maria had been carrying standing alone in front of Kate, crying.

"A bad man hit us and I runned away" She sobbed.

Clark felt his stomach jolt. "I'll go check on her Dr.Desantis" he said as he turned and sped back into the building. Clark saw Maria being dragged down the hall, fighting for all she was worth with one of Lex's guards. He had one hand over her mouth and the other was holding a gun. Clark supersped over and tapped him on the forehead, knocking him unconscious.

"Let's go!" he said to Maria who was staring at the guard lying on the floor stirring a little, he seemed to be waking up.

She looked up at Clark in surprise. "Where did you come from?" she asked.

"Never mind that now." Clark said, "We have to go." and they hurried down the hall towards the open door.

Maria looked behind them just in time to see the guard raising his gun and aiming at the center of Clark's back.

"No!" she screamed and flung herself at Clark just as the gun fired.

Clark looked back at her yell and hearing the gun reacted in super speed to grab Maria and turn so the bullets bounced off his body. Then he continued his turn and using his heat vision seared the gun, forcing the guard to drop it as he curled up around his burning hands.

Clark lifted Maria in his arms and super sped outside to the van. Once again he set her down and asked "are you okay?" This time Maria just nodded, unable to speak.

"We need to go!" called Kate and she grabbed Maria and dragged her to their van, stuffed her inside and took off out the main entrance.

Clark hopped in next to Chloe and she floored their van. They tore out of the parking lot, spraying gravel as they went. Chloe pushed the van to its limit and they sped down the road, took turns on two wheels, and were well on their way to Metropolis with no pursuit in sight before either of them said a word.

"She saw you use your powers." said Chloe, looking worried.

"How did you know?" asked Clark.

"I recognized the stunned expression." Chloe smiled, remembering. Then she looked over at Clark. "What did she say?"

"Nothing, we didn't have time to talk." Clark looked miserable.

"What do you think she will do?" Chloe gripped the steering wheel so hard her knuckles turned white, "Will she tell anyone?"

Clark shook his head, "I don't know. I don't think so." He looked at Chloe, desperate for reassurance. "I don't know what to do."

Kate whipped the van down the road a short distance, then she turned down a small gravel road and pulled into a grove of trees. She turned off the engine and they sat in silence waiting. Soon they saw three black SUVs fly past. Kate waited awhile then slowly eased down the gravel road with the headlights off, navigating by moonlight.

"Are you okay sweetheart?" Kate asked Maria. She tried to see Maria's face but it was too dark.

"I'm fine Mom. Clark saved me," Maria still couldn't get her head around just how that had happened. She stared into the night remembering how it had felt when the bullets made his body jerk, the terror that had washed over her when she thought he had been shot, and the overwhelming feeling of joy when she realized he wasn't killed. She remembered the sensation of incredible speed when he carried her, it had felt like her stomach had been left down the hall, like the sudden drop on a rollercoaster. Finally, she remembered the look of fear in his eyes.

"I need to talk to Clark" Maria said to her Mom.

To be continued…


	10. Chapter 10

Wow, you're still here reading my story! Thank you for the reviews and encouragement. Since you asked so nicely here's the next chapter. I hope you like it!

Stars and Water

Chapter 10

Kate and Maria headed back to the main road and drove to the Metropolis airport, returned the van and then rented a small car at another counter. Exhausted and worried about going home they decided to stay at a hotel near the airport under Kate's maiden name.

"Do you really think he's going to come after us?" asked Maria, trying to relax in a strange bed after a very strange night.

"Well the guard saw you and we didn't plan on that. It was probably Simmons; he's on a low carb diet. I know he took a brownie but he probably only ate a bite." answered Kate, shaking her head. "I have a back up plan but I had hoped we wouldn't have to use it."

Maria stared at her, "You do? What is it?"

Kate wearily gestured to Maria to come see as she flipped open her laptop. "This is what Lex Luthor will wake up to in the morning." She pressed play and Maria read the message and watched the video, stunned.

"Well that should take care of the problem." Maria said quietly, looking at her mother with new eyes. She really hadn't thought she had it in her.

Kate nodded, exhaustion showing in her face and the droop of her shoulders. Now that it was over she felt like she was too tired to think anymore, much less talk. "Let's go to bed Maria, we need to try to get some sleep."

The next day Maria was up early and went looking for Clark. She found him walking in the Kent apple orchard. He seemed preoccupied and didn't notice her approach until she was almost next to him. "Hey, Maria." he said quietly, his eyes filled with apprehension.

"Clark, we need to talk about last night" she said.

Clark felt sick. Here it comes, he thought, the questions, the accusations, the lies. After all he had gone through with Lana he just didn't have the stomach for it. He turned his face away from her, staring at the ground. The last glimpse Maria got of his face as he turned was heart breaking. He looked so miserable and Maria couldn't stand to see him feeling that way. She walked right up to him and took his chin in her hand and gently turned his face to hers, gazing earnestly into his eyes.

"Clark, last night I saw you do things that were amazing. You saved my life! I also saw how you looked at me afterwards. I came by to let you know your secret is safe with me. Believe me, after what I saw in Lex's lab I know what can happen to someone who is different and how cruel the world can be. I would never tell anyone about you. I just wanted to be sure you knew that, okay?"

Clark nodded, "Thank you Maria. That means a lot to me." He looked into her eyes like he was trying to read her soul. "It doesn't scare you." He said finally "The things you saw me do. You aren't looking at me like I'm some kind of freak."

"Clark, even though you're meteor infected I'm not scared of you. I haven't known you long but I know you are the sweetest, most selfless guy I've ever met. How could I be scared of you? You make me feel safe. I trust you." Maria smiled up at him "It's not your abilities that define you; it's what you choose to do with them."

"You sound just like my Dad" Clark said wistfully, "I wish you could have met him, he would have liked you." It was true, Clark thought, his Dad would have liked this girl. She was strong and brave and compassionate. She'd been willing to put herself in front of a bullet to save his life. It felt wrong to allow her to believe he was meteor infected. The fact that she was so open and accepting of him made him want to open up more. It seemed pointless to lie since she had already seen him use all of his powers. She wouldn't be in any more danger than she was already, he thought. He wanted her to know him as he truly was. Even if it meant she rejected him, at least he could be honest. He was so sick of lying to the people he cared about.

Maria wondered why Clark looked so sad now. Hadn't he believed her when she'd told him she wouldn't tell anyone his secret? She had expected him to be able to relax and be happy again but now he seemed even more miserable, if that was possible. She gently squeezed his hand, trying to radiate love and encouragement through her touch.

Clark swallowed hard and clenched his jaw. He kept his gaze locked with Maria's as he said "There is something I want to tell you but it will probably scare you and it will change how you feel about me. I want you to know that however you react is okay." Clark swallowed hard, "I'll understand, I just…I want you to know the truth about me."

Maria put her hand to his cheek and slid it up to tug a lock of hair on his forehead. "You worry too much Clark, I can handle it." She grinned at him and Clark smiled doubtfully at her.

He cleared his throat nervously and said so softly she could barely hear him, "Maria, I'm not meteor infected. I have these abilities because I'm not human. I'm from another planet."

Maria felt the heat rise up in her face as her anger flashed. "That's ridiculous! If you don't want to tell me about yourself that's okay but don't lie to me."

Clark was taken aback, He hadn't thought of what to do if she didn't believe him. It wasn't like he had his spaceship to show her. "It's the truth Maria." He said quickly "I'm from a planet called Krypton and I was sent to earth when I was a baby. My parents were protecting me; they sent me to earth just before my planet was destroyed. I came with the first meteor shower and the Kents adopted me."

Maria just stared, how could this be possible? "Clark you don't look like anything other than a very handsome farm boy. I'll admit you have some strange abilities and you're more beautiful than the average guy but you sure don't look…" and she ran out of words as another thought struck her.

"You mean I don't look like an alien?" Clark said a little bitterly, "Believe me I've tried all my life to be like everyone else but I'm not"

"Ummm, you aren't in …um someone else's body or skin or… something …are you?" Maria couldn't help it, she stepped back a step and looked at him apprehensively.

"No Maria." Clark felt like he'd been stabbed when she stepped away. "This is all me. This is who I am."

Maria couldn't believe what she was hearing. Obviously Clark was serious, the pain in his voice was real and it was clearly hard for him to talk about this but, honestly, Clark Kent an alien? She looked into his eyes and saw the deep sadness there. Her doubts wavered. What if it was true? Why would he lie about something like this? Maria moved closer again.

"You said your planet was destroyed? What about your parents, all the other people?" She asked quietly, beginning to believe him in spite of herself.

He noticed and appreciated the fact that she called them "people".

"As far as I know I'm the last survivor" Clark said, and the look in his eyes was so desolate as he gazed into hers that she felt tears forming in her own eyes in response. She thought of what it must be like to be so alone. She looked at him speechless as she fully accepted what he had told her and let it sink in.

He wasn't human, didn't belong on this planet. There was life on other planets? Her mind was in a whirl as she felt her entire concept of reality shift. How many other planets?

"Maria?" Clark said "Are you okay? You look like you're going to pass out." He was concerned by her dazed expression. She was really pale and she swayed a little. Clark got ready to catch her.

Maria narrowed her thoughts down from an entire universe full of aliens to the one standing in front of her, the one who looked like he was waiting for the executioner's axe.

"I um," she cleared her throat and tried again "I'll be okay." She managed to get out. She smiled weakly up at him and picked up his hand, then looked down at it, studying it like she'd never seen it before as she stroked it gently.

She thought about the power he had and what he could do with his hands. She thought of his gentleness and self restraint and what he chose not to do with his hands. Maria moved closer to him and put his hand up to her cheek, turning her face into it and kissing his palm. Then she looked up into his eyes. "I love you Clark Kent." she said simply. "Wherever you're from I'm so glad you're here with me now."


	11. Chapter 11

_Happy New Year one and all!! Thank you for continuing to read and comment on my story. I hope you enjoy my next chapter…Colleen Joy_

Chapter 11

Clark looked into her loving brown eyes and swallowed hard past the lump in his throat. There were no words to say how her trust, her acceptance and her love made him feel. He gently cupped her cheek with his hand and slid his other hand into her hair. Tilting her head back he leaned in and kissed her tenderly on the lips, putting all the emotions he was feeling into the gentleness of his touch and the softness of his kiss.

Clark felt her melt in his arms and heard the sound she made, something between a moan and a soft whimper. He felt his heart speed up and a wave of heat washed over him in response.

Leaning into him Maria surrendered to his kiss, smoothing her hands up his chest to wrap her arms around his neck. He felt so warm and smelled like soap and the sun on fresh hay and a smell she simply thought of as Clark. Her body was responding to him, her heart pounding and her knees going loose. She tightened her grip to keep from falling and kissed him back with growing passion.

Clark barely allowed them a moment for breath before he kissed her again, more insistently now. Keeping one hand in her hair he moved his other from her face to clutch her waist, pulling her body tight against his.

She was intoxicating; he felt he never wanted to stop kissing her, the rest of the world ceased to exist and all he could think of was how her lips felt, warm and velvety under his, and her hair ran over his hands like cool silk. The feel of her body against his was wonderful and he longed to be even closer to her. Desire for her shot through him in another wave of white heat and he felt his eyes begin to burn.

Suddenly Clark pushed her away from him. His eyes were shut tight and he was gasping for breath as he turned. When he opened his eyes a patch of grass nearby burst into flames.

Maria stared in amazement as he apparently lit a fire with a glance. He remained with his back to her as his breathing slowed. "Clark, are you okay?" she asked in a trembling voice.

"Oh yeah, just fine." he said, and the frustration in his voice made her wince in sympathy. "I thought I had my heat vision under control a long time ago but apparently it still needs a little work." He turned around but still avoided looking at her. As he turned she saw a flicker of light in his eyes and then it was gone.

"So… you lit that fire with your eyes…on accident?" Maria asked. "What made you…ohhhh." And she stammered to a halt as a blush spread up his face. "Oh, dear, this could make life interesting." and she giggled nervously. "Please tell me there's a way for us to work on this so we can kiss without igniting Smallville because that kiss was, um… well, I don't want to give up kissing you like that so maybe we should just keep a hose handy."

Suddenly Clark laughed. "So you liked that?" he asked, arching one eyebrow wickedly and smiling. He moved close to Maria again and wrapped her in a hug, kissing her on the forehead before resting his cheek against it. "Thank you for not freaking out." he said quietly. "I'm sure with a little practice I can get things back under control."

"If practice is what you need then count me in." she said, snuggling up against him. "Hey, maybe we should try it in the shower." Maria watched happily as Clark's jaw dropped and his cheeks turned red again. He was so cute when he blushed.

"Um, Clark I think the fire might be spreading." said Maria, looking over his shoulder at the still burning patch of grass.

"Oh, right." said Clark calmly as he turned his head, blew gently at the flames and nodded with satisfaction as the fire puffed out.

"Wow!" said Maria looking at Clark in amazement and admiration. "What else can you do?"

"Have you had breakfast?" Clark asked. My Mom is in Washington but I can make a pretty good omelet." He smiled at Maria hopefully.

Dear God, could he get any better, thought Maria. On top of everything else, he cooks! "I'd love to have breakfast with you Clark." She said with a grin.

Suddenly Clark picked her up and with a mischievous smile he said "Hang on." and their trip to the Kent house took Maria's breath away.

"Woo hoo!" she said enthusiastically when he set her down on the porch. "That was fun!" and patting Shelby on the head she followed Clark inside for breakfast.

Lex was having a bad morning. He'd been up late with Deirdre, or was it Debbie? Anyhow, they had stayed up late and drank way too much champagne and now his head hurt like a drummer was using it for practice and his mouth felt like it was full of cotton. It hadn't helped to be dragged up from his few hours sleep to find out Project Generation had been sabotaged.

He poured some coffee from the silver pot on his desk and took a sip. Grimacing at the taste in his mouth he added some whiskey and then took a longer gulp. Better. No one seemed to know who did it but from the description of one of his guards the Desantis girl had been involved. Along with a tall man with dark hair that sounded amazingly like Clark Kent. The guard had only seen him from the back so that could be wrong but he had seen the girl up close and there was no mistaking her. It was a shame really, Lex thought, a waste of beauty, but her mother had been warned.

He opened his laptop to find he had an email.

_Dear Mr. Luthor,_

_Enclosed is a copy of a video I have made from the archives of 33.1 and my own footage of the lab. Please pay special attention to the segments where it is clearly shown that you planned to experiment on children._

_I have sent copies of this video, to many people whose names I will not discuss. Suffice it to say that if any harm befalls me or mine this video will not only be handed to the proper authorities, who may or may not be in your pocket, but copies will also be posted on You-tube and other internet sites. In other words Luthorcorps' real soul will be very publicly displayed and your stock will drop like a meteor. _

_If I ever hear you are endeavoring to collect these children or imprisoning others be assured you will be hearing from me in a very public way._

_Dr. Katherine Desantis_

Lex choked on his coffee. Then he watched the copy of the video with growing rage tinged with fear. She was right; this would destroy his company if it got out. It was intolerable that this woman should threaten him! He could not let her get away with this. There had to be a way to get all the copies, or to threaten her or…Lex was at a loss, each option led to consequences he found unacceptable. Rage washed over him and he threw his cup at the wall where it shattered, shards of porcelain raining down on the rug.

To be continued…


	12. Chapter 12

_Last update for 2007! I hope you have a Happy New Year! Kind of a fluffy chapter but, what can I say, I told you in my profile I'm sick of Clark being miserable…more adventures to come later. Thank you for the reviews! _

_Enjoy!_

_ColleenJoy_

Stars and Water

Chapter 12

When breakfast was over Maria had to admit that not only could Clark cook but he could cook well. He also refused to let her help clean up and she watched in amazement as he blurred into super speed. "Oh, wow! I wish I could do that," she said, looking at the sparkling kitchen. "Is there anything you can't do?" She asked, only partly joking.

Clark thought a minute, "I'm really bad at playing the guitar, I keep breaking the strings, I can't sing to save my life...and I haven't learned to fly yet..."

"Excuse me," interrupted Maria, "Why do I get the feeling you aren't talking about flying a plane?"

Clark grinned, "Well I wasn't, and I can't fly."

Maria jumped in. "Yet! You said you hadn't learned…Yet."

"Well something tells me I'm supposed to learn. I have dreams about it and I've floated and, well, I did fly once but it wasn't really me." Clark became serious. "There's still a lot about me you don't know." He got that sad, haunted look again and Maria couldn't bear it.

"Well when you want to tell me I'll be right here to listen." Maria took his hand and held it, stroking the back of it with her thumb as she smiled lovingly into his eyes. "And when you do fly I hope you'll take me with you."

Clark gazed back with a yearning, passionate look that made her insides turn to liquid heat. Maria's smile faded and she moved closer to him, tilting her head back so she could continue to look into his eyes.

"I love you Maria." He said softly, his voice shaking with emotion.

Suddenly Clark grabbed her and pulled her close as he seized her mouth in a hungry kiss. Maria was startled at first but her hands seemed to have a mind of their own as they wandered up under his shirt and stroked the tense muscles of his back. Clark wrapped his arms around her and held her tight as he trailed hot, tender kisses down her jaw to her neck.

Maria shivered as his lips found the ticklish spot where her neck joined her shoulder. Clark, noticing the shiver, nibbled slightly and smiled against her skin as she wiggled and gasped. Clark could feel the heat building inside him at her response. This time he managed to control it before he caused any damage. He felt Maria's eyes on him and looked up to see her smile. "I guess we won't need the hose after all." she said, her voice low.

"Guess not," murmured Clark, "but I still think we should practice, just in case." and he dove in for another kiss that left her breathless and trembling. There was nothing in her world right now but Clark. The feel of him, smell of him, taste of him, drove all coherent thought from her mind.

Clark reveled in the newfound feeling of freedom Maria gave him. He could relax with her, be himself with her. He felt light, like he was flying already and he showed her how he felt in the only way he could think of, putting it all into his kisses and the gentle way he held her.

All last night he had been so worried, he had tried to come up with some kind of plausible lie to tell her and it had made him feel sick to imagine lying to her. Now the need for that was gone and he could let his guard down. For the first time in his life he was free to love and be loved completely. He was happy, even though he still had major problems to deal with, the phantoms for instance and Lex… "Lex!" Clark pulled away from Maria a little.

"Maria are you and your Mom and Nick safe? You could all stay here if you need to." He looked at her, concerned. He should have asked sooner. He couldn't believe he had simply forgotten about Lex, so swept up in the joy of being accepted and loved by Maria he had lost track of the rest of the world.

Maria blinked up at Clark, it took her a moment to process what he was saying, then she had to form a response and make words come out in some kind of order. "Mom says we're safe, for the moment. She has a plan to keep us that way." Maria gave Clark a reassuring smile. "Thank you for offering your home to us. It means a lot, but I really think we'll be okay."

Clark nodded, he wasn't so sure, but he would let it go for now and talk to Oliver later. He wasn't going to let any harm come to Maria or her family.

"Clark, I should probably go." said Maria reluctantly, "My Mom is waiting and we have things we need to take care of today." Moving away from Clark felt like stepping out of a warm shelter into a cold wind. She had to brace herself to do it and she shivered as he loosened his grip and let her back away. She had to force herself not to leap right back into his arms when she saw the look on his face.

"Could you, maybe, come back this evening or, well, I'll come get you and we could go on that date." asked Clark. He didn't want her to leave but it helped to know when he could see her again.

"That would be great, Clark. I just have to make sure everything is okay with Mom and Nick and then I'm all yours." Maria smiled brightly and gave him a quick kiss before she headed to her car. Go quick, girl or you'll never leave, she thought. "See you tonight Clark."

Clark stood on the porch and watched her go, tonight couldn't come fast enough, he thought.

While Clark waited for the incredibly long hours of the day to pass he decided to call Oliver and see what they could come up with to keep the Desantis family safe. Clark knew with his time occupied by the Phantoms he couldn't protect them by himself. All Lex would need was one opening and Maria, along with her family, could be killed. Clark felt it would take a network of protection to keep them safe and he trusted Oliver to help arrange it. His trust was well placed.

Oliver took his call immediately and Clark was happy to find that Oliver already had Dr. Desantis' welfare in mind, as well as her future employment.

"Of course I offered her a job Clark. She's one of the front runners in her field and her latest research is very promising. Lex was crazy to pull her off it and put her on the Generation project, but then, that project was crazy anyway so go figure. Of course we will keep an eye on her. I'm sure Lex would love to get at her but I'll tell you what, I think Dr. Desantis has him by the short hairs. He seems to be leaving her alone anyway. Yep, the team is on it. Believe me, anyone who fights evil like she did will have our full support. Hey, I hear she has a beautiful daughter. Think she likes blond billionaires? Just kidding Clark, you can breathe now. I've heard rumors about you two, are you doing something about that? Really, you have a date tonight? It's about time. Okay, stay out of trouble Boyscout."

Clark hung up with a sigh of relief.

Maria came home to a very different mom than the quiet, worried woman she had left that morning. Kate was talking in happy bursts as she threw clothes into a suitcase. "He wants to meet me personally." She said, as she studied three blouses, trying to pick one and then shrugged and tossed all three in. "If I accept his offer, and I'd be crazy not to, I'll head my own team and I'll be able to continue my cancer research with even more funding."

Kate stopped and looked at Maria. "Will you be okay alone for a week? Nicky is having a blast with his cousins at Nora's and I told her he could stay. I'm going to be touring the research facilities, meeting the other scientists and getting to know Mr. Queen. It shouldn't take more than a week but if it does I'll call you." She looked searchingly at Maria. "What's up, kiddo. You look positively glowing and I don't think it's my job offer.

"Mom, I'm in Love with Clark…and…He loves me back!" Maria said the last part in a near shout, happy to share this with her mom.

Kate wrapped Maria in a hug. "Oh, sweetie that's wonderful. What a lovely feeling. Clark is a good man."

"It doesn't bother you that he's, um, different?" Maria asked. She wouldn't tell her mom Clark's secret but she knew her mom had seen at least some of what he could do.

"Maria, I saw Clark do amazing things to help others who couldn't help themselves. I saw him treat you with gentleness and concern. I saw how he was with the children. I found out he has friends who are equally compassionate and selfless. Yes, he is very different from a lot of young men." Kate sighed and stroked Maria's hair "The fact that you accept him is enough for me, and that he loves you just shows what an intelligent man he is."

"Thanks Mom." said Maria happily. "Now tell me more about your new job offer.

To be continued…


	13. Chapter 13

Time for another chapter! Typing madly here (Yes I have basically finished the story but I'm proofreading and rewriting and polishing it up for you) I hope you all like it… Feedback would be lovely!

Stars and Water

Chapter 13

Clark called Maria to see when he should pick her up for their date and then he showed up promptly at 7:00 with a bouquet of wild flowers he had picked just before he left.

Maria restrained herself from leaping into his arms when she saw him at the door and simply said "Clark, thank you, they're beautiful." as she accepted the flowers and kissed his cheek, "Come inside while I put them in water and then we can go. Mom's already on her way to Star City and Nicky is in Eugene so this time we are guaranteed to at least get out the door."

For dinner they went to a local Diner and ate some of the best burgers Maria had ever tasted. She also discovered that you simply cannot steal French fries from a man with super speed. Then they walked over to the theater for a movie. "Oceans"… something or other. She had been too focused on Clark and how he held her hand, slipped his arm around her, then moved in for a kiss to pay much attention to what was on the screen. She supposed Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and George Clooney were good looking in their way but they didn't hold a candle to the man sitting next to her.

After the movie Clark asked her to come to his house. "The moon is just a sliver tonight and the sky is clear. There's something I'd like to show you." He said, looking into her eyes and stroking the hair out of her face with gentle fingers.

As they got out of the truck at the Kent's farm Clark's cell phone rang. "I have to take this, it's Chloe." said Clark with regret. Maria nodded and they walked into his house together but separate, with Clark on the phone.

"Chloe, calm down, where are you? Okay, I'll be right there." Clark snapped the phone shut, turned to run and then looked at Maria. "I have to go, wait for me, I'll be right back." And Clark disappeared into the night, all that was left was a light breeze that faded into nothing.

Maria wandered into the living room and sat down on the couch. Shelby promptly climbed up next to her and put his head in her lap. "Something tells me you're used to sitting this way with Clark." Maria said, scratching the dog lightly on the head. At the sound of Clark's name Shelby lifted his head and looked at the door, then huffed out a sigh and dropped his head back on her lap. "I know how you feel boy. I wish he were here too." Maria patted the dog, listened to the peaceful sound of the crickets and tried to relax. She was worried about Clark and Chloe. Clark can handle it, she told herself, if anyone can be counted on to always come back it would be Clark.

Clark showed up at the warehouse just in time to see the building burst into flames. Chloe came running up to him. "Clark! Oh My God. Jimmy is inside." Clark quickly scanned the building using his x-ray vision, found Jimmy lying slumped by a door on the second floor and blurred into the building. He ignored the flames and heat as he plowed a hole through the wall to go directly to him. Holding his unconscious body close he sped back out to Chloe.

"Is he okay? Is he okay? Oh God Clark…" Chloe looked at Jimmy's pale face in terror but then relaxed a little when he moaned. "We need to get him to a hospital." said Clark. Right then an ambulance came flying up the road, closely followed by two police cars and a fire truck.

Clark looked at Chloe in surprise. "I called 911 right after I called you." She said, bent down over Jimmy now, stroking his face and patting his cheek.

"Good thinking Chloe. What happened?" asked Clark, staring at the burning building.

"I was following a lead on a story about a drug dealer who we thought used this warehouse. I was going to meet someone here but Jimmy didn't want me to and he came down on his own instead. I showed up here and I could hear him calling for help." The ambulance was coming to a stop. "The building was locked and I could smell gasoline. I couldn't get to him." Chloe fought back sobs, "So I called you. Thank you Clark."

Clark patted Chloe's shoulder awkwardly; he hated to see her cry. "I'm sure he'll be okay Chloe."

She smiled up at him, "Thanks to you. Now you have another person on your list of saves, Jimmy Olsen."

"If he hangs around you and Lois much this probably won't be the last time." said Clark. "You okay? I should probably go." he looked nervously at the police car pulling up, picturing the gapping hole he had made in the building and hoping the thing burned down before they noticed it.

"I'm fine," she responded, "Go Clark, Thank you again." And she watched him step back into the darkness and disappear.

Maria looked up from the couch at the sound of the door. A strong smell of smoke wafted in along with Clark, wearing ragged, smoldering clothes. Smears of black soot were on his face but he was grinning at her reassuringly. "It's not as bad as it looks, honest." He said, looking at his red jacket for the first time. "Darn, that was my favorite Jacket."

Before Clark had time to say anything else he had his arms full of Maria. She kissed him and then she calmed down enough to ask "Is Chloe okay?"

"Yes, it was actually Jimmy who was in trouble. He was trying to protect Chloe and in true Jimmy form he got himself into a mess." Clark shook his head grinning. He couldn't help but like Jimmy, he made Chloe happier than he'd seen her in a long time. Clark went on to describe what had happened. Maria listened with wide eyes as she fingered the scorched rags of his clothes and checked him for burns.

"So you walked into an inferno and all you got was burned clothes?" She smiled at Clark but there was also a look of awe in her eyes.

Clark wasn't sure he liked the look she was giving him; he didn't feel like he was heroic for doing something that came so easily. "It wasn't brave or anything Maria, there's not much that can hurt me."

Something can, she thought, remembering the day on the river. She started to ask about that when she sneezed. "Wow, Clark that smoke smell is really strong." She sneezed again.

"I guess I better take a shower and change. I'll be right back." Before he could superspeed away she caught his hand.

Maria didn't want to let him out of her sight again, it had been awful waiting for him and worrying and now that he was back she needed to be close to him. "Clark, um," Maria turned red all the way to her ears; she couldn't believe she was doing this but she jumped in anyway. "How about we, I mean we could…I want to be with you, could I…" this was awful, spit it out girl, she thought.

"Maria, are you trying to suggest we take a shower together?" asked Clark, now blushing just as much, but along with the embarrassment Maria saw something else in his eyes and it made her lose the capacity for speech altogether. She just nodded weakly.

They held hands on the way to the shower and Maria rested her head against his arm, sneezing, up the stairs.

Lex was pacing in his study. There was a fire in the fireplace even though the evening was warm. Watching the fire usually relaxed him but nothing was helping tonight. Lex had already sent home the girl he'd picked up at a nightclub. That attempt to relax had gone nowhere because he was so distracted he hadn't been able to respond to her ministrations.

He poured himself another brandy, took a large drink and swore. He was not going to let some stupid woman get the best of him. Dr. Katherine Desantis had made a mistake when she'd threatened a Luthor.

He paced more and then flipped open his laptop. After a little searching he found what he wanted, all his records on the scientist and her family.

You threaten to hurt what's precious to me and I'll destroy what's most precious to you, he thought, looking at the picture on the screen.

Maria smiled innocently back at him, teeth flashing white and dimples peeking. "I'll find a way to hurt you somehow." he growled and he took another massive drink. He was getting drunk, a rarity for Lex who preferred to be in control at all times. She's so pretty and sweet looking, he thought, a wistful expression flitting across his face before he laughed bitterly at his weakness and banished it with a burst of anger. "Too bad your Mom's a b." He snarled.

To be continued…


	14. Chapter 14

Thank you for the reviews! This one was tricky to write so please let me know what you think. I switch locations/perspectives in it. I hope it's not too hard to follow. Enjoy!

Stars and Water

Chapter 14

Clark and Maria giggled a little nervously as they both stepped out of their shoes and socks and stood barefoot on the cool tiles. The bathroom seemed unusually bright and Clark lit the candle in the bathroom with his eyes and turned off the light, casting the room in a dim and flickering glow. Maria looked at the floor, feeling suddenly unsure of herself and what she had gotten into. Clark lifted her chin with gentle fingers and looked into her eyes. "Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked softly. Suddenly all her hesitation vanished at the love and concern she saw in his gaze.

She looked into his eyes and placed all her trust in him as she answered with a quiet, "Yes." She saw his expression of love and longing and recognized a momentary flash of light in his eyes as he looked at her.

"This has got to go." she exclaimed as she started to hug him but stopped at the crunch of his burnt clothing. Tugging on the blackened fabric Maria eased him out of the rags of his jacket and dropped it near the door. Next she grabbed the bottom of his once blue T-shirt and pulled what was left of it over his head. There was an awkward moment where she needed his help because he was too tall for her to reach and the shirt got stuck. He grinned at her and she giggled a little, her eyes wide at the sight of his rippling muscles as he tossed his shirt aside. Then she sneezed again, startling then both as the candlelight flickered and the pile of clothes grew.

Lex's voice slurred with anger and alcohol as he gave the instructions to the team he had quickly assembled. He showed them the picture of Maria and gave them all of the information he had on her movements. He finished his instructions with the words "I want her alive, she's no good as a bargaining chip if she's dead. Understood?" The men nodded sullenly but what did he care. They weren't paid to like their assignments, just to carry them out.

There was grumbling as the men left and if he had bothered to listen he would have heard the one named Matt muttering to his partner Scott, "We aren't paid enough to be kidnappers, damn it. I signed on for security detail because he paid more than the police department and the wife wanted a nicer house. I never signed on to hurt some poor woman who never did anyone any harm.

"Yeah," Scott agreed, "none of us like it but don't let him hear you say that or your daughter will be the next target."

Matt grumbled something about bald heads making good targets too but Scott's gesture shut him up as they walked by some other employees.

Clark adjusted the water so it would be comfortable for Maria and held her hand as she stepped into the tub so she wouldn't slip. They stood letting the water flow over them for a minute and then took turns washing each other's hair. It was easy for Clark to reach Maria's hair to work in the shampoo. He'd never washed long hair before so he enjoyed playing with it as the soap made it slippery. When he used his fingertips on Maria's scalp he heard her sigh and he turned it into a little massage, delighted to see her relax under his hands.

When Maria's turn came it was a little more challenging because Clark was so tall but she managed, running her fingers over his scalp and scratching lightly, making little circles with her fingertips until he almost purred with pleasure.

Then Maria got the washcloth and soap. "You first, you're the one who still has soot stains on his skin." She said, looking with appreciation at the beautiful skin that she was about to wash.

She started with his face. Using very little soap she lightly washed the black streaks off his smooth forehead, pushing his wet curls out of the way and being careful not to get soap in his, now closed eyes. Then she smoothed his cheeks and ran the wash cloth along his jaw, kissing his chin when she was done. Finally she gave his nose a swipe, giggling as she polished away a black mark on the tip.

Then Clark took the other wash cloth and with an incredibly light touch for such strong hands he washed her face, stroking her cheek bones and kissing her forehead when he was done. He kissed her closed eyes delicately and then his mouth was on hers, kissing her deeply, burying his hands in her wet curling hair and devouring her like a man who's been starving. He became a little rougher and more insistent when she responded eagerly, pressing her hips against him and moving restlessly.

At her movement Clark stopped abruptly, leaving Maria feeling confused. "Clark what's wrong?" Maria asked in a daze, "Why did you stop?"

"Maria I'm afraid I might hurt you. I don't know what will happen if I ummm… if I loose control." Clark was blushing furiously, his heart pounded, his breathing was uneven and she could feel his body shaking as he held himself back. "Maria I don't know if I can do this." He whispered.

Maria looked at him and she could see fear mixed with the longing and passion in his eyes. "Well, you shake hands and touch my face and kiss me and that doesn't hurt. Why would this be different?" She asked.

"I've had years to practice and adjust my strength to those situations. This I, how can I, I could break your bones or," and he gulped and moved away from her.

"Clark." she said "You wouldn't let that happen. You've had to be so careful, every minute, all your life. I can't imagine you ever hurting me." She looked up into his troubled face "We can go as slow as you want. Okay?"

Clark relaxed and smiled a little tentatively at her "Yeah." He said, relief clear in his voice.

Although she was disappointed Maria hardly blamed him. It wasn't like his body came with an owner's manual. With all the things he was capable of who knew what might happen. She just knew for certain he would never hurt her and sometime she intended to prove it to him.

She handed him the soap. "We still need to get clean." She grinned as she shivered a little, "The water's getting cold so we better hurry."

A black SUV pulled up slowly on the street outside Maria's house and two men dressed all in dark clothing and carrying guns loaded with tranquilizer darts climbed out. They glanced around the neighborhood but it was obvious no one was awake. Creeping silently across the lawn they worked their way around to the back door.

Using a lock pick they easily opened the door's simple lock and crept in using penlights to look around the house. They took up their positions and waited in silence like hunters on a deer stand, watching for their prey to walk unsuspecting into their crosshairs, while the neighborhood slept on unaware.

At the Talon dark figures were lurking in the shadows outside the now closed and silent coffee shop. They positioned themselves with open views of the door and set up their rifles loaded with the same darts, top of the line, instantly effective, only the best for Lex Luthor. There was a battered old van parked nearby equipped with duct tape and a mattress in the windowless rear section.

In the basement of a building owned by a company that was owned by a company that was owned by Lex, a secure room was waiting. It resembled a vault and had crates filled with precious artifacts of questionable origins waiting to be smuggled into the Luthor mansion. If Lex had his way it would be holding something very precious to Dr. Desantis soon.

Kate was having a wonderful time in Star city. Her meeting with Oliver Queen had gone very well. He'd been much younger than she expected and better looking than she felt comfortable with. Oh, to be twenty years younger and forty pounds lighter, she thought. When she got over the initial shock, she found him to be charming and intelligent with a strong sense of decency she found refreshing after her dealings with Lex.

Seeing the facilities that would be put at her disposal and meeting the people who would make up her team made Kate want to start work immediately and she tried several times to call Maria and fill her in on her plans.

Maria was busy at the time and chose not to answer the phone.

To be continued…


	15. Chapter 15

Okay, did everyone stop reading or was there nothing nice to say? Hmmm….Well I'll post some more in hopes that **someone** will like it. Hint, hint ;) Begs

Stars and Water

Chapter 15

After the shower Maria was cold so Clark proceeded to make a fire the unique Clark Kent way. In seconds there was a crackling blaze radiating waves of comforting heat. Maria smiled as she sat on the couch brushing her hair in the fire's glow. Satisfied it would continue burning but stay inside the fireplace, Clark sat down beside her. Leaning back against the arm of the couch he eased her back to recline against him with her head on his chest. They stretched out together on the couch and soaked up the heat. Clark didn't feel cold as a problem, or heat as pain but the warmth felt good and Maria's body pressed to his in repose felt even better.

Sighing contentedly he stroked her hair gently out of her face. She was wearing one of his flannel shirts with her jeans and he liked the way it looked on her. There was something about the fact that she smelled like his shampoo and was in his shirt, it was intimate somehow. It makes her more mine, he thought as he smiled crookedly at his own possessiveness.

"Are you warm now?" He asked softly, brushing his lips across her forehead. Maria fluttered her eyes open, "Mmmmm yes," she answered, stretching like a contented cat and then snuggling deeper into his arms.

They lay together resting a moment and enjoyed simply being close to one another. Clark couldn't remember ever being this happy. The light in the room dimmed as the fire died down to a glow and Maria lost the struggle to stay awake. Clark heard her breathing deepen and saw the peace on her face and he smiled. He rested his cheek against her hair and drifted gently into a deep sleep with the smell and feel of her surrounding him.

Lex's head pounded in a ripping hangover and his eyes ached from glaring at his computer screen. All night he had waited for word on the Desantis girl and all night the only thing he had received had been hourly updates of her continued absence. Could she know about his plan?

He thought not. No, it would be impossible. His plan was perfectly laid out. There were no flaws. "Where are you Maria?" he muttered impatiently, "don't you know we have an appointment?" She'd been out all night. Apparently she wasn't as innocent as she looked. Who had she been with? Certainly not Clark, he'd have to know her for years before he got up the nerve to try anything like that.

The next morning Clark woke up with the sun as usual. The light streaming in filled him with energy and he smiled as he looked at Maria. Her hair was flowing across his chest like a wave of dark silk, sparkling in the sunlight. Her face was relaxed and her mouth was open a tiny bit which made her even more inviting. Clark kissed her lightly and then carefully got off the couch, easing her over without waking her.

She was still deep asleep so he decided to go do his chores and then make breakfast. Once he silently got dressed and left the room he bounced out into the sun, whipping through his chores and smiling happily to himself the whole time as he planned a breakfast for her.

When Maria woke up it was to the smell of coffee. She lay on the couch and stretched deliciously. Her body felt heavy and loose, as though she had jello instead of muscles. She lay there and tried to summon the energy to sit up. "Coffee "she thought, "Coffee and Clark." Well, that got her upright. She giggled at the way his shirt hung to her knees, tried to straighten her hair a bit, and then wandered into the kitchen, rubbing her eyes.

The smile Clark gave her as she entered the room lit his face like a little boy's grin, bright and open, with nothing held back. Maria grinned back at him and thought; now there is something wonderful to wake up to in the morning.

Matt was sick of this, "What are we doing here in this girl's house?" he asked Scott. "We're already guilty of breaking and entering and soon it's going to be kidnapping and I worry Lex will add murder."

"Well, My God Matt, obviously we wouldn't do that." Scott looked at him, disgusted. "If you hate this so much, you should quit."

"At this point Scott, I'm thinking Mr. Luthor has really slipped off the rails and I'm afraid for me and mine if I did try to leave. There was silence in the house and outside they could faintly hear a robin announce the rising sun.

"You have a point there Matt." said Scott quietly.

"Hey Scott?"

"Yeah Matt, what is it.?"

"Maybe it would be best if it was us that kidnapped her. I mean Lex has guys that would do this gig for no pay other than the benefits of having the girl tied up. Maybe we can protect her."

"You keep thinking that if it helps you sleep nights." Scott replied, "Right now I hear a car pulling into the driveway so we better shut up and get ready."

Maria felt much more energetic after a delicious breakfast of fresh Strawberries, Martha's famous homemade muffins and scrambled, just gathered eggs. "That was fantastic Clark," She said with a smile, "but I insist you let me cook you dinner." Clark agreed enthusiastically, anything to spend more time with Maria.

"Tonight, my house, 6:00." She looked up at him through her lashes and said huskily, "I'll give you anything you want." Then she laughed at his expression, it was so easy to make him blush. "Look, I'll just make Roast Beef and gravy with other good things, okay?"

"That sounds great Maria." Clark stood up to clear the table, he was so happy he could hardly sit still anyway. He still couldn't quite believe this was real.

"I know I can't do it as fast, but this time please let me help clean up?" said Maria as she joined him. She convinced him to let her help and they did the dishes together. When they were drying them and stacking them safely in the cupboard she caught Clark looking at the clock.

"Maria, I told Chloe I'd meet her at the Planet." Clark was worried; would she be jealous of Chloe? He really wanted to check on Chloe after last night, he was sure she was worried about Jimmy and blaming herself. "Chloe's my best friend and I made plans earlier."

Maria shrugged, "Its okay Clark, I think I can manage to occupy the rest of my day off without you." She grinned, "Unfortunately I need to do something really exciting, like laundry." She didn't want Clark to think she wanted to come between him and his friend. Chloe must be pretty important to him; he seemed to trust her with everything, and he had so few people he could trust. "Hey, maybe Chloe would like to come to dinner too? She's going to need company with Jimmy in the hospital for a few days." The look on Clark's face told her she had made the right choice.

Later, when he took her home she was even more certain of her choice to befriend Chloe. Clark was talking as they walked up the drive, and she had never heard him talk so much. All the way to her house he had been telling Maria stories about himself, Pete and Chloe and she was enjoying this insight into young Clark Kent.

Scott and Matt linked eyes across the room and crouched low. If someone came in with her they were prepared to take him down too.

Clark kissed Maria goodbye at her door and when she turned to unlock it the keys were hard to manage in her awkward fingers. The fact that he was standing close to her and breathing lightly against her neck didn't help any. Maria turned her head and kissed him, "Bye, sweetie." She said, then turned the key and slipped inside as Clark reluctantly stepped back. 

"See you tonight," Clark said with a beaming smile.

Maria turned in the doorway and looked at him; his smile still struck her speechless. She was a lucky, lucky woman, she thought. "Yes, tonight Clark, I can't wait." And she closed the door when he turned and walked away.

Clark smiled to himself as he drove off. He felt like the world was a different place with Maria in it.

Maria closed the door and leaned against it. "Wow," she said, "just, wow." And she laughed and hugged herself, then spun across the room in a little happy dance.

Matt tried to aim but her erratic movements made it difficult. Every time he thought he had a clear shot she twisted in another direction.

Maria danced over to her CD player and started looking for a CD that matched her mood.

Scott was tracking her as she spun, he nearly fired twice but she moved out of his cross hairs both times at the last minute. Finally she was still and he took the shot.

"Ouch!" Maria jumped and slapped at the sting on her shoulder. Must be a bee, she thought. Then the world spun and she was filled with terror as huge shadowy figures moved towards her. She screamed for Clark but it came out as a faint whisper as she hit the rug and fell into darkness.

To be continued…

Please review? Pretty please with sugar on top?


	16. Chapter 16

Thank you for letting me know you liked it! Whew, I was starting to wonder.

Stars and Water

Chapter Sixteen

Clark turned the radio up and rolled the windows down, singing along with the music. He was thinking about how fun it would be to share more of his life with Maria. He could take her to the Planet with him next time and explore Metropolis together. Maybe they could both attend Met U. The thought of attending College together made him almost miss his turn.

Bouncing into the Talon Clark nearly made Chloe choke on her Latte when he stood before her laughing and said "I come in peace," while placing a muffin on the table before her. "Sorry I'm late. I was a little preoccupied."

"Who are you and what have you done with my friend Clark Kent?" asked Chloe, her eyes wide in wonder. Clark looked amazing; he looked dazzling, he looked happier than she'd seen him in ages.

Clark just grinned at her and sat down but it was obvious he could hardly contain himself. "I told Maria everything." said Clark, turning suddenly serious but with a smile playing around the corners of his mouth.

"My God Clark you hardly know her!" Chloe sounded surprised and worried, "I can't believe you told her your secret."

"Well I wasn't going to. In fact I was going to break it off because I couldn't lie to her and I couldn't burden her with the truth but she saw me. You know what I mean, you were there." Clark looked into Chloe's eyes, very serious now, "Did I tell you she tried to put herself between me and a bullet? I barely turned in time to keep it from hitting her." Chloe shook her head.

"When she came to my house yesterday I was ready to lie but I came up blank, and then, oh god Chloe she was so sweet." Clark looked down and fidgeted with his hands. "She came to see me because she didn't want me to worry. She thought I was Meteor infected and she wanted to be sure I knew she wouldn't tell anyone. How could I lie to her, she was being so trusting and open with me? I didn't want to repeat all the problems I had with Lana, besides, the truth is she's not Lana. She has no history with the meteors and doesn't talk to Lex, and…honestly, I just couldn't do it again." He looked into Chloe's eyes. "I couldn't make myself push her away."

Chloe nodded, she did understand, she knew how much it killed him to lie. It was why he was so lame at it. "I take it from the expression on your face that Maria has no problem accepting intergalactic travelers." said Chloe with a smile, if Maria ever betrays him I will kill her, she thought, watching Clark's face light back up with one of his irresistible grins.

Maria woke in terror. It was dark and what she could make out of her surroundings she couldn't recognize. She couldn't move and realized she had been strapped down in duct tape. Her arms were taped to her body and her ankles were taped together and a small piece was across her mouth. There were large rectangular objects looming in the dark around her and she guessed they could be crates of some kind. She was lying flat on her back on top of an old mattress in the midst of them and even if she tried to roll she couldn't have done much but fall off of the mattress and hit a crate.

Outside she heard voices and she strained to hear what they said. There was a cold, high pitched man's voice saying, "Okay guys it's our shift now, you brought her here and you have to come back and guard her at midnight, but now it's our turn." He laughed and it made her hair stand up on her neck. "She was unconscious when you had her but she'll be nice and awake for us."

"Mr. Luthor said not to hurt her Stan, you know that." said a deeper voice with a hint of authority and anger in it.

The high voice answered "I'm not going to hurt her!" He let out a strange mirthless giggle. "Hell Scott, she'll probably like it. Never had a real man like me I'll bet. Probably needs it." Maria struggled against the tape and a tear trickled down her cheek when she made no progress at all.

"I swear to God Stan, you touch her and I'll make you wish you were never born." said another voice, almost a tenor and with music in it, even though right now it was angry music.

"Whoa, back off Matt, you want her to yourself? I get that. But why not share?" Stan actually sounded a little afraid of Matt and Maria couldn't help feeling cheered up by that.

"Look Stan, we aren't all perverted like you." said the deeper voice, Scott, she thought to herself, God bless Scott and Matt. "If you lay a filthy hand on her we'll find out and Lex Luthor will know you didn't follow his orders."

Lex Luthor! Maria thought, I should have known.

"Fine, Fine," said Stan in a frightened sullen tone. "No touchy, I get it, seems a waste but whatever." Maria sighed in relief but continued to struggle as she listened to footsteps retreat and could hear Stan talking to someone else in an angry tone and that person seemed to be in agreement. Her eyes widened and her mouth dried up at what she heard them discussing.

Clark and Chloe drove into Metropolis to visit Jimmy in the hospital and it took both Jimmy and Clark working together, to finally convince Chloe to stop blaming herself for what had happened. Chloe listened, delighted, as Clark praised Jimmy for saving Chloe from being hurt by the drug dealers. She could see how that made Jimmy brighten up and she thanked Clark later.

"Hey, I meant every word Chloe." said Clark, "He's brave and he kept you out of danger. He got himself into trouble but he's not the first guy who's been willing to do that for Chloe Sullivan." And he grinned at her.

After checking in at the Planet they headed back for the long drive to Smallville and Maria's house. Standing in front of the dark house Clark felt the hairs go up on his neck. "Chloe, someone took her, I know it."

"Come on Clark, maybe she forgot something and ran to the store." reassured Chloe.

"Chloe, her car is still here, the house is dark and she's not answering her phone." Clark's voice was rising. "Lex has her. If I had stayed with her this wouldn't have happened. I shouldn't have left her alone."

Chloe felt cold fear settle in her stomach. If Clark was right there was no knowing what Lex would do. She didn't want to think about what it would do to Clark to loose someone else. "Clark, look at me." Clark turned to Chloe with his eyes so full of naked pain that she had to swallow hard to continue. "We will find her. I'll help and we will find her."

Light streamed across the floor as the door opened to the room Maria was lying in. She curled up as small as possible on the mattress and blinked into the light.

A man walked into the room, blocking the light and standing over her grinning, it was not a nice smile. "Well, well, hello there little lady, looks like we have us some time to play." He said, and she recognized with a shiver the voice of Stan. "I wonder how you sound when you scream." and he reached down and touched her arm. Maria flinched away and that seemed to anger him.

He grabbed her arms hard and hauled her into the patch of light on the mattress. "Maybe you like it rough," he growled, "I know I do." And he leaned down and ripped the tape off her mouth. Before she could scream he had covered her mouth with his in a savage kiss. Maria struggled to get away but he held her tight and ground his mouth into hers, cutting her lips with his teeth.

Maria fought a wave of nausea that rose in her at the feel of his mouth and taste of his breath. Then she realized she had a weapon after all and let herself go. Just as he pulled away for a breath Maria vomited on him, soiling his face, his shirt, and down his neck. Stan swore and jumped back.

He stood there shocked and disgusted for a moment and then rage filled his eyes and fisted his hands. With a curse he struck Maria so hard her head rocked back on the mattress and she lay there stunned by the pain. Stan ran from the room and she could hear him telling his partner that he had to go change clothes and get cleaned up. She heard a loud laugh and a lot of swearing and then the slam of a door as Stan left. Through the pain and the fear Maria smiled a small smile of victory.

Clark was headed to the mansion to confront Lex. There wasn't a thing Chloe could do to stop him and she wasn't sure she wanted to even if she could. He'd dropped her off at her apartment, jumped out of the truck and blasted into superspeed leaving her in the middle of the words, "Be careful Clark."

Lex sauntered into the warehouse while dialing the number he had recently acquired for Dr, Desantis. When she answered he smiled and said pleasantly "Dr. Desantis, how nice to hear your voice." His smile widened as he heard her gasp, apparently she wasn't happy to hear him. "I thought you might like to reconsider the threat you made after you have a nice heart to heart with your daughter. She's staying with me at the moment." His voice changed suddenly to a cold, hard, growl "If you want her back I suggest you start collecting all that nasty information you've been passing around about me. I'll let you know where to take it later. Otherwise I might have to start returning her to you piece by piece."

Kate gripped the phone so hard her knuckles turned white. "Let me talk to her." She held back a sob. "I'll give you what you want, just don't hurt her." Lex smiled triumphantly.

Approaching the door where Maria was being held Lex looked at the man standing there. "Where's your partner?" he asked brusquely. Then he waved off the man's answer and said "I don't have time for your excuses, unlock the door, Maria needs to talk with her Mother."

Matt lay in bed chasing sleep but it wouldn't come. He kept seeing Maria lying helpless in the warehouse. Finally he gave up and got out of bed, reaching for the phone. It rang just as his hand touched it and he jumped.

Clark searched the mansion for any sign of Lex and not finding him he headed for Metropolis to search in Luthorcorps headquarters.

Chloe called Oliver and filled him in on what was happening.

Maria lay back on the mattress trying to rest; she wanted all her strength for whatever opportunity might come her way, then she heard a voice at the door and recognized Lex Luthor. The door opened and he stepped into the light that streamed in, casting his shadow across her body as she lay there frozen in fear.

Matt knew Scott well; they had worked together for years, so it didn't surprise him at all to hear Scott's voice on the line. The fact that Scott couldn't sleep and wanted to check on Maria just made Matt nod while he slipped on his pants. He listened to Scott rant as he buttoned his shirt and tugged on his boots. When he finally heard a pause in the flow of words he said, "Be there in ten." And he hung up.

Oliver paced the room thinking. If Lex had taken Maria then he had really gone off the deep end and there was no knowing where he would stop. "My God," said Oliver coming to a sudden halt. "Nickolas will be next."

To be continued…


	17. Chapter 17

A nice, long, chapter. Just for you. Enjoy!

Stars and Water

Chapter 17

Clark stood leaning against the wall of a building he had just sped through in search of Lex. His head was hanging, he was breathing hard and he held his eyes shut for a moment and prayed to God for help. "I can't do this alone," he prayed, "I can't find Lex and I can't find Maria." Exhausted physically and emotionally he decided to head home, check in with Chloe and rest for a few minutes before continuing his search.

Lex held the phone out towards Maria. "I put it on speaker phone; please tell your mother how you are enjoying your stay." He commanded.

Maria struggled upright and yelled loudly, "Mom, I'm okay! Tell Clark I'm…" Lex gestured for silence, pressed the button that took her off speaker and walked away while Maria continued to yell for her Mother and Kate begged to talk to her daughter.

"You may talk to her when you comply with my demands. I'll call back in four hours and I expect to hear of major progress in your endeavors." Lex flipped his phone shut with a snap and returned to Maria, She was panting to catch her breath after yelling and she glared at him.

"You could have at least let me hear her voice." she said, her own voice breaking. Tears filled her eyes and she blinked them back furiously, she didn't want to cry in front of Lex.

Lex stared at her, noticing her blackened eye, bloody lip and disheveled appearance for the first time. Something in him twisted and tried to cry out in pity. He beat the impulse down automatically. Pity and compassion were for the weak. He replaced the emotion with rage at the stupid employee who couldn't follow a simple instruction. He would be dealt with accordingly.

Lex stared at the flannel shirt she was wearing, that was very familiar. "So you were with Clark last night, interesting. I never would have expected him to move so quickly in a relationship." Lex sneered, so if you shared his bed then you must know his secret." The expression of horror that flitted across Maria's face before she schooled it to calm was enough for Lex. "Oh, now this is truly interesting. What a fortuitous development. We have much to discuss my dear Miss Desantis."

Maria lay down, turned her back on Lex and growled out between clenched teeth to hide their chatter. "We have nothing to discuss Mr. Luthor."

Matt and Scott came striding into the warehouse and confronted the guard at the door. "Let us in, we want to check on the prisoner." They exchanged a look of surprise when they heard that Lex was with her and settled into comfortable positions on the floor leaning against the wall. "We'll wait."

What they heard Lex say next to Maria sent them back to their feet and out the door in a hurry. If Lex was talking like that they had better do something quick or the girl would be dead soon.

Oliver called Kate and filled her in on his concern and the plan he had to help. She was a little doubtful at first but he assured her it would work. Kate made the call to her sister Nora so she wouldn't be alarmed when the boy disappeared. She was stunned to find the house in chaos and Nicky already gone.

Clark stopped at the Talon to check in with Chloe and she only shook her head sadly when he asked if she had any leads. "I'm sorry Clark. I can't find any sign of Lex or Maria." Chloe wrapped Clark in a hug and felt his tight muscles relax a little. "She'll be okay." said Chloe.

Nicky looked up into the face of the young man who held him. It was a nice face and Nicky, still being young enough to think that bad guys are always ugly, felt reassured. There was something about this person that reminded Nicky of Clark even though he was younger, and blond and much smaller. It was a look in the eye, the feeling of safety and protection he gave. Nicky rested his head on the man's chest and watched in amazement as the world went past in a flash.

Maria lay on the mattress and tried to conceal her terror, no longer afraid for herself but for Clark. She didn't want to imagine what Lex would do if he knew of Clark's true nature and she resolved to die before telling him a thing. As brave as she tried to be she couldn't hold back the shivering that betrayed her true feelings.

Lex watched her and seethed. What was it about Clark that inspired such loyalty in his friends? "If you don't tell me everything you know about Clark Kent I will literally send pieces of you back to your mother, starting with your big, brown doe eyes." He said in a chillingly calm voice. Lex's cell phone rang and he glanced at it. "I'm afraid I don't have any more time for personal pleasure at the moment but I will be back later and I look forward to a revealing conversation about our mutual friend Clark Kent."

"He's going to kill her. I swear to God. He's going to kill her no matter what." said Matt. He and Scott were standing outside the warehouse talking in hushed voices. "He could never say the things he's said to her and let her go. She could testify against him."

"He mentioned Clark Kent. Isn't that Senator Kent's boy, the one who used to come to the mansion all the time?" said Scott.

"The one who saved Luthor's life, more than once? Yes that's him. Lovely how quickly the gratitude wears off isn't it?" Matt scowled, "Look this is what we should do. We can't go to the police because we're accomplices but we can call Clark Kent and tell him what's going on and where she's being held. Maybe he can do something."

"Let's get out of here before Luthor sees us and go make the call. I don't know about you but I have a bad feeling about how much longer the girl has." said Scott in a hushed, urgent tone. Both men hurried away.

Clark jogged wearily home. He had never run so far, so fast, for so long in his life. He struggled to lift his heavy legs and walk up the last steps to his door. He could hear the phone ringing from the porch and he tried to hurry to answer it but they hung up just as he lifted the receiver. Clark fell onto the couch and sprawled out, too tired to even remove his shoes. He stared at the ceiling and his eyes filled with tears of frustration and worry. "Maria where are you." He murmured. And he fell asleep with a tear spilling down his cheek.

Maria lay on the mattress shaking for a while after Lex left. Then she rolled over and tried to get comfortable. She was so tired that she drifted into an uneasy sleep in spite of her fear.

Kate looked at the young man holding Nicky. He'd appeared suddenly in a whoosh of wind and now he was grinning broadly while holding an armful of wide eyed boy. He handed Nicky to her with care and said "Here's your little guy Ma'am, safe and sound."

Kate thanked him with tear-filled eyes. "What's your name young man?" She asked.

"Bart" he said, Bart Allen" and he threw her a devil may care grin "I've got to go, the boss wants me to report back right away." And he was gone.

Matt was frustrated "Doesn't anyone answer their land line anymore?" he groaned, hanging up after the fifteenth ring.

"Maybe he isn't home." said Scott, "Let's give it twenty minutes and try again."

Stan stormed back to the warehouse, clean and wearing fresh clothes but with the same filthy thoughts. The other guard at the door, Mitch, smirked at him and said "Welcome back lover boy. Mr. Luthor was here, he's not too pleased with you at the moment. Seems a certain idiot didn't just kiss the girl. You gave her a black eye."

Stan's face lost all color and his confident stance fled. "Mr. Luthor saw that? I didn't think he was going to actually come here."

"Face it Stan, you didn't think at all." Mitch looked away in disgust.

Stan leaned with his back to the wall and slid down slowly to sit next to Mitch on the floor. "It was her fault. She made me mad. She puked on me!" he argued.

"If you tell him that, he's going to want to know what you did to make her puke. Quite the ability Stan, making women throw up with one kiss. I'd keep the fact that you messed with her quiet if I was you, you're already in hot water. Now shut up, I'm trying to get some rest." And Mitch shut his eyes and tipped his head back against the wall. Stan sat there trying to come up with an excuse Mr. Luthor would buy.

Chloe stared at her computer screen. She'd found Lex. He was at a business meeting in Metropolis, or at least he was supposed to be there. She picked up the phone to call Clark.

"Miss Sullivan" her editor's angry voice called from across the room. "If you wouldn't mind I'd like a word with you about your latest story that is NOT on my desk as we speak."

"I just need to make a phone call and I'll be right there okay?" pleaded Chloe.

"It is most certainly not okay. I want you in my office, now." And the editor stood waiting for her, tapping her foot impatiently.

Chloe reluctantly put down the phone and followed her editor from the room.

Clark was dragged up from a strange dream where a bell was ringing in a tower to find that the sound was actually the phone in the kitchen. He lunged off the couch and rushed to grab it. This time he got there before the person hung up. "Hello? Yes, this is the Kent residence. Yes, I'm Clark. You what?" Clark had to hang onto the counter as a rush of emotions flooded him, relief, rage, fear, hope, all warring within him at the same time. "Where is she? Is she okay? Oh God…" Clark lost the power to speak for a moment. "Of course I'm going to do something about it." And he hung up. Clark stood tall as energy surged through him, finally he could do something to help Maria. He disappeared in a burst of speed.

Stan got up and unlocked the door to Maria's room. Mitch was sound asleep as he crept past him.

Maria was twitching in her sleep, a whimper escaping her lips as she strained against the tape holding her. She awoke and jerked away as she saw Stan leaning over her with a wild look in his eyes.

"It's all your fault." He snarled. "I'm in trouble with Mr. Luthor and it's all your fault. Well if I'm gonna pay for messing with you then I'm gonna really finish the job." He raised his fist to strike her again and Maria curled up as small as she could.

"Leave her alone." A familiar voice called out.

Stan turned and grabbed his gun from its holster. A young man was standing there, completely unarmed and yet menacing in the way he looked at Stan. A shiver ran up Stan's spine and he fired at him, emptying his clip into the man's chest as the terrifying man continued his approach. Suddenly Stan found himself flying through the air. He crashed into a crate and fell to the floor in a heap.

Maria struggled to sit up at the sound of Clark's voice. When she saw Stan fire on him she couldn't suppress a scream even though she knew the bullets wouldn't hurt him. She watched as Clark tossed Stan aside and came to her. Gentle hands ripped the tape away. Then she was held in a loving embrace and sobs wracked her body as all the terror of the last hours poured out of her.

Clark held her, stroking her back gently as she cried. "It's okay Maria; it's all going to be okay. You're safe now sweetheart. It's okay…" he repeated over and over as she slowly calmed down and returned his hug with a tight grip.

"I knew you'd come." sobbed Maria, "I was scared but I knew you'd find me somehow."

Clark held her away from him a little and looked at her face; gently brushing his hand across the bruises with such a light touch she barely felt it. "I'm so sorry you were hurt Maria," He said, "I should have been with you, protected you. If I hadn't left you alone none of this would have happened."

She looked into his eyes "I'm all right Clark. This wasn't your fault. Lex kidnapped me, and I think the guy who hit me is going to have more bruises than I do when he wakes up." She couldn't restrain a satisfied smile as she looked over at Stan.

Clark followed her eyes to the man lying in a pile of splintered crates on the floor. "You mean he…" Maria felt Clark gather himself for an attack and interrupted. "Clark, can we go now? I want to get out of this place." and she shivered.

Clark scooped her into his arms and stood up. He looked into her face and smiled. "Ready?"

She smiled back and held on tight, snuggling her face into his chest to shield herself from the blast of wind to come. "I'm ready Clark, let's go."

Stan slowly raised his head and peered over to the mattress where Maria had been. He gulped in horror to see that it was empty. Climbing painfully to his feet while hugging his aching ribs he staggered out to find Mitch lying unconscious by the door. Mr. Luthor was going to kill them, he thought. Well Stan decided not to be around for that, and avoiding Mitch he hurried to his car. Once inside, he floored the gas pedal and roared away blowing through two red lights and nearly wiping out a homeless man on the street corner in his hurry. He cursed as he saw the red and blue flashing lights in his rearview mirror. Apparently Metropolis police don't like it when you drive recklessly. They were going to like his stash of cocaine in the glove box even less.

Maria felt Clark slow to a stop and raised her head to look. They were on the porch of the Kent Farm and she took a deep breath of the hay sweet air. The profound silence and peace that surrounded this place entered her soul.

Clark managed to open the door while still holding her, he wasn't ready to let go and she made no effort to get down. Instead she held on tighter until he carried her to the couch and sat down with her in his lap with her head still tucked into his chest. Clark turned and swung his feet up so he could stretch out. Maria draped herself across him and he continued to hold her tight in his arms.

"We need to call your Mom" said Clark, Maria agreed, she desperately wanted to talk to her Mother. "and Chloe, and Oliver." He continued, and she nodded into his chest. He shifted so he could get to his cell phone. Calling Kate first he handed the phone to Maria.

"Mom? Mommy, it's okay. I'm okay, don't cry Mom. Clark saved me and we're safe at the Kent farm. No, I promise I won't go home for anything. Okay Mom. I love you too. I'll see you in the morning." She handed Clark the phone while wiping away her tears, "She wants to talk to you."

Clark gingerly took the receiver. "Yes ma'am, thank you Dr.Desantis. Yes, I'll take good care of her; she'll be safe here tonight. Yes ma'am, first thing in the morning. Thank you, God bless you too ma'am." Clark blushed, "Goodnight Dr. Desantis." Clark smiled at Maria, "I think your Mom likes me." He said with a twinkle in his eye.

Maria rested her head on his chest. "She wants me to stay with you tonight to be safe. I hope that's okay."

"Well, I suppose I could handle having you here tonight." Said Clark in a teasing tone that said it was a hardship but he would suffer though it.

After calling Chloe and Oliver Clark snapped the phone shut and let it drop next to the couch. Maria was nearly asleep on top of him but when he moved she mumbled, "I feel dirty and I need a shower but I'm too tired to get up."

Clark gently stroked her back, "Why don't you rest here and I'll draw you a bath. It'll only take a minute." He eased himself off the couch, sliding her onto the cushions as he went. Her eyes fluttered but never fully opened and she lay limp and exhausted where he put her.

When Clark came back he found her sound asleep. He sat next to her on the couch and studied her as she slept. Maria's face was pale and drawn in pain, the bruise on her cheek had darkened and one eye was swollen nearly shut. Her mouth was cut and puffy and there was blood on her lips and dried blood on her chin. She was still wearing his shirt and it gave him an odd feeling, as though wearing his clothes had made her more a part of him.

Rage at Lex washed over him as he pictured Maria's ordeal. You will not get away with this one Lex, thought Clark, this time you will pay for your crimes. Maria stirred and opened her eyes sleepily and all thought of Lex fled his mind as she reached for him.

Maria was so exhausted that Clark carried her to her bath and helped gently ease the clothes off her stiff and battered body. She clung to him as she stepped into the tub, and then groaned as the warm water wrapped her body in comfort when she slid down into it. Clark had added some of Martha's vanilla bubble bath and the scent filled the room and washed away the last of Maria's tension. Clark left her there in privacy to soak and probably, he thought, to sleep, and went upstairs to take his own shower and change. He found a flannel nightgown that he thought would fit Maria in his Mom's closet and brought it to her.

After her bath Maria's muscles had gone to liquid and she barely found the strength to pull herself upright in the tub. Noticing this, Clark supported her as she got out, helped her dry off, and then let her cling to him as she tried to keep her balance while slipping on the nightgown. Just this small effort left her breathless and he once again scooped her up and carried her, this time to his bed.

Maria breathed in the smell of Clark, damp and smelling of soap and shampoo. She felt him lay her lightly on the flannel sheets of his bed and the dip of the mattress as he climbed in next to her. A feeling of safety and warmth flooded her as she felt him tuck his heavy quilt around her and drape his arm protectively across her body, pulling her close. Maria wanted to give voice to the gratitude and love she was feeling but all that came out was a sigh as she fell into a peaceful sleep. Clark kissed her shoulder tenderly and relaxed into his own exhausted sleep. He would deal with Lex tomorrow.

To be continued

Okay, I've done my part, it's time for you to do yours. Please review! Begging shamelessly again here. I know it's a pain to log in and leave your opinion and I really appreciate the effort when you do. Thanks!


	18. Chapter 18

Thank you for the reviews!! I hope you like this one…

Stars and Water

Chapter 18

Maria woke up first, and that alone told her how tired Clark was. She looked at him as he slept; his face relaxed and innocent, his body taking up most of the space in the bed with his long limbs sprawled out. She resisted the temptation to wake him, and slid out of bed very quietly. Getting dressed in her jeans and another of Clark's flannel shirts, she snuck down to the kitchen to try to make coffee and maybe even breakfast before Clark got up.

Maria looked up from pulling a coffeecake out of the oven to see Clark standing in the kitchen grinning at her. He had on jeans and a white T shirt along with his usual work boots. His face glowed from recent washing and his hair was a tousled, sexy mess. "Good morning sleepy. You're just in time." She said proudly, setting the cake on the counter and reaching for a cup to pour him some coffee.

"Good morning Maria." He gratefully took the coffee. "I'll just take a minute to do my chores and be back in time for breakfast." Before she had a chance to respond he had disappeared with a breeze and by the time breakfast was on the table he was back washing his hands, ready to eat.

After they ate a quiet meal and cleaned up Clark said, "We should get to Star City as soon as possible. I know your Mom wants to see with her own eyes that you're okay, and we have a lot of work and planning to do if Lex is actually going to pay for this. Especially while keeping your family safe at the same time."

Maria looked up at Clark, moved next to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm ready." She said.

Clark looked down at her and grinned, "What am I, a taxi?"

"I tip really well." She replied in a low, provocative voice, quirking one eyebrow and grinning wickedly up at him.

Clark laughed, scooped her up and sped to Oliver's place.

The first person they met as they were shown in by Oliver's butler was Bart. He leaped to his feet, put down the donut he was eating and wrapped Clark in an enthusiastic hug. Then he turned to Maria,

"Whoa Clark, another hot senorita? You know more beautiful women than a Hollywood agent!"

"Hi I'm Bart" He said to Maria while taking her hand and pulling her close to look into her eyes. "I'm the next love of your life." Maria giggled helplessly, trying not to laugh outright in his face. He was so cute and daring.

He turned back to Clark, "Please, tell me she's just a friend too? Cousin? Long lost sister?"

Maria answered, "Girlfriend, I'm afraid."

Bart looked at her in surprise, "Seriously?"

"Very serious Bart," she replied, "I suggest you let go of me before Clark gets jealous and you get airborne."

Clark did his best to scowl and look menacing, standing with his arms folded across his chest, but he lost it in laughter at Bart's expression.

"Well if he ever breaks your heart, sweetness, I'm your doctor." said the ever persistent Bart.

"Who needs a doctor?" said Oliver, striding into the room. "Clark! Man it's good to see you!" and Oliver shook Clark's hand and grinned at him. When he turned to Maria, Clark was surprised to feel a little jolt of jealousy at her wide eyed reaction.

"This is my girlfriend, Maria Desantis." stated Clark, stepping over to her and slipping his hand around her waist. Maria glanced up at him, a little surprised at his tone and then she smiled and leaned into him as if to say, yes, I'm his and he's mine. "Maria this is my friend, Oliver Queen."

Maria held out her hand, smiling warmly "I'm very happy to meet you. I've heard wonderful things about you from Clark and my Mom."

Oliver took her hand and found himself gazing into those warm brown eyes a little too long. He cleared his throat, "It's nice to meet you too Maria. I'm so glad you're safe." He turned to Clark, "Nice save, by the way."

They were interrupted by a yell "Catch him!" yelled Victor, followed by a thunder of feet upstairs and a thump. "He's getting away!"

Clark tensed for action, and then looked surprised as Oliver and Bart seemed completely unworried. Suddenly Nickolas came fleeing down the stairs closely followed by AC and Victor. "Grab the alien!" yelled AC as Victor swung Nickolas off his feet and twirled him in the air.

"I've got you now you little invader and I'm going to keep you from taking over the…Oh… Hi Clark!" said Victor breathlessly, still holding Nicky.

"Clark!" yelled Nicky struggling out of Victor's arms and running over to Clark. "We're playing space invaders and I'm an alien, come be an alien with me and we'll beat these silly old humans," and he grabbed Clark's hand to drag him into the game.

The room fell silent as everyone watched for Clark's reaction. Clark had an odd expression on his face and didn't seem to know what to say so Maria bent down "Nicky! Don't I get a hug?"

"Maria!" shrieked Nicky, throwing himself at her. "I missed you! I'm having fun! Come be an alien too!"

"How about I'm the alien's friend and we can work together with the humans?" she asked, glancing at Clark.

"Naw, that's boring." said Nicky, turning from Maria back to Victor and AC, "You can't catch me." He said and he darted away back up the stairs.

Victor reached out and shook Clark's hand, "Good to see you, man!" he said, then he looked to Maria, "She knows?"

Clark smiled back at Victor, "She knows about me." He stated clearly, he hadn't told Maria about everyone's secret, only his own. "Victor this is Maria Desantis. Maria this is my good friend Victor."

They shook hands warmly and Victor said, "So you're cool with Clark's situation?" it was important for him to know there were women who could accept people who were very different.

"Yes," Maria said softly, and the look she gave Clark completed her answer.

AC stepped forward and wrapped Clark in a bear hug that made his ribs creak. "Clark, it's been a long time!" He said, then he turned to Maria, "I'm AC." and he gently took her hand "How are you Maria?"

"I'm good," She replied, then she looked up at Clark again and felt his arm settle back around her waist as he looked into her eyes. Really good, she thought, wrapping her arm around his waist as well.

She was looking at him with such open love in her gaze that it brought a lump to Victor's throat, made Oliver look away, AC just smiled and Bart said "Okay guys, geez, get a room."

"Maria!" called a familiar voice on the stairs, and Kate came hurrying down as Maria raced to meet her. Both women had tears flowing down their faces as they hugged in a long embrace. "Thank God you're safe." said Kate in a choked voice.

"Now that we're all here I think we need to do some planning." said Kate, switching from loving Mom to analytical scientist. "We all know that things have been set in motion to take down Lex Luthor. Now we need to finish the job."

Lex was awakened by a frantic phone call from the security guy in charge of holding Maria. The idiot was barely able to keep his voice steady as he told his boss all he knew. It wasn't much. Someone he hadn't seen had knocked him out and taken the girl. The fact that Stan was in police custody didn't make Lex any happier and he expressed his displeasure in a cold and biting tone.

Brooding on the significance of Maria's disappearance and weighing options in his head on what to do about it he poured himself a cup of coffee. Taking a drink he shook open his morning paper. There on the front page of the Daily Planet, above the fold, was an article about 33.1 and human experimentation at Luthor corps. The author was Chloe Sullivan. Lex choked on his coffee and reached for his phone. Then a horrible thought occurred to him and he flipped open his laptop. There it was, just as she had said it would be, splashed across the internet for the world to view. He groaned as he saw how many people had already watched the video.

Lex grabbed the remote and turned on his television. Channel after channel was talking about the latest Luthorcorps scandal, with lines like "Using people as unwilling human lab rats" and "profiting from the misery of helpless children." Then Lex saw the latest Dow-Jones stock report and groaned. Luthorcorps stock was bottoming out.

Lex's cell phone rang. He looked at the display and braced himself before answering. "Hi Dad." He really didn't think things could get any worse. If he had seen Clark and Maria walking into a detective's office and Martha Kent meeting with selected colleagues in the Department of Justice he would have realized that things had only started to go bad.

Clark was walking out of the detective's office with Maria when he got a call from Chloe. "Clark, I know you're really busy right now but I think I've found a phantom. I mean I've found something that is killing people by the boatload and has unearthly powers."

"You have to go don't you?" Maria asked, seeing Clark's face told her everything. "I'll be okay. I'll be safe here with my family and your friends around me."

Still Clark hesitated; he hated to just leave her like this. "Maria, I'm sorry, you're right, I have to go. It's a phantom and, like I told you the other day, I'm responsible for them being here and I'm the only one who can deal with them." Maria pulled him into a passionate embrace and he held her for a long moment. Her kiss was demanding and hungry, he could feel the fear she didn't want to voice in it, the fear something would happen to him and he wouldn't return. She was shaking as he pulled gently away, stroking her face with his hand before he turned and walked quickly down an alley before disappearing completely.

To be continued…


	19. Chapter 19

Mmmm reviews…Thank you for feeding the author!! I hope this part isn't too confusing. Yes, I switch points of view a lot. It's intentional, like scenes in a show and I tried to make it clear when it switches. Hope you like this one…and don't worry, I didn't forget Lex.

Stars and Water

Chapter 19

Chloe was pacing by her desk when he got there. "Clark, I wouldn't have bothered you but this thing is really moving fast and nothing seems to affect it. Come take a look."

Clark peered over her shoulder at the computer. The reports she had pulled up documented an unknown, mostly unseen, attacker that basically shredded anyone or anything in its path, including an armored vehicle. Clark's jaw clenched at the number of people it had already killed. "Thanks Chloe, you're right, it needs to be stopped now." And with a last look at the map she had pulled up to detail it's movements he left the office in super speed, leaving the papers flying off her desk in his wake.

"Be…careful Clark." Chloe finished, and she stared at the place he had been and tried to push down the sense of dread that was rising up in her.

Lex was in his office when the FBI came to arrest him. They pulled his hands behind his back, read him his rights, handcuffed him and marched him out past his employees. There was a time, years ago, when he would have received support from those employees. Now, after the layoffs, the wage freezes, the reductions in benefits while his lifestyle became more and more decadent and gaudy, they smiled as he was led away.

Lionel shook his head as he watched the evening news. The fool had really messed things up. The only way to salvage anything of the company was to completely separate what Lex had done from Luthorcorps as a whole and paint it as Lex's insane project that the company didn't support. He'd have to isolate Lex and leave him to suffer the consequences of his actions this time.

Clark arrived at the location he had memorized while glancing at the map. The fishing village was decimated and nothing moved except the wind. Clark focused his hearing and listened. Somewhere in the distance he could hear screaming and the grinding crash of metal being shredded. Clark turned and ran towards the sound.

Maria turned over and tried to go to sleep. Clark will be alright she told herself. He's invincible, brave, smart, and he can handle anything. Then the other thoughts came; he's young, the phantoms can hurt him, he's alone and if he gets hurt I'll never know, he should have been back by now, it's been a week, for all I know he's dead. She beat her pillow into submission, tried a new position and prayed for Clark like she had never prayed before. The sky outside turned grey and then rosy with the dawn, the light crept inside her window to find her still praying, tears running down her cheeks.

Lois was confused. All she had done was make a reference to the fact that Smallville seemed to be MIA and Chloe went nuclear. Why on earth would she get so angry when Lois made the joke about aliens abducting Clark? Oh well, the Flannel King always did make Chloe a little nuts. Lois decided to let it go and get back to the lovely job of writing articles about Lex. An anonymous source had given her the scoop of a lifetime and she intended to make the best of it. Daily Planet here I come, she thought.

Martha was having a hard time listening to the members of the agriculture committee drone on and on about new regulations. She hadn't heard from Clark in days and it worried her. Even though they didn't share the same address anymore Clark usually called nearly everyday and he stopped by frequently as well. Martha sighed; she would just have to trust that he would be okay. Many years of practice really didn't make it easier.

Clark noticed the noise first. Like a bird, but no bird he'd ever heard before. This bird seemed to be saying words in a high, small, whispery voice. He realized his eyes were closed and wondered about that. He was laying on something soft, he could feel heat washing over him from nearby and a familiar crackling sound told him it was a fire. He tried to open his eyes but his eyelids wouldn't move, they were too heavy. He focused on the voice again and realized it was a child's voice, whispering. As he concentrated he could make out words. "Mommy says we should take turns talking to you so our voices can guide you back." The soft voice said, "I had to wait a long time for my turn." The voice was right next to his ear and the whisper was so quiet he strained to hear it. "Thank you for saving me from the monster."

A memory flashed in Clark's mind, a whirlwind of teeth and claws with a howling voice that hurt his head. He remembered being hit; he remembered pain like he had never felt before. He looked up from the ground into wide blue eyes. There was a child, a little girl watching with her mouth hanging open. Too terrified to run she just stood there with the phantom roaring closer to her and whimpered, "Mommy".

Leaping up Clark put his body between the Phantom and the child, taking the ripping blows that would have shredded her. Clark remembered pain and flying through the air to crash against the side of a tree. He remembered having the crystal in his hand as the Phantom rushed at him and the earsplitting wails the Phantom made as it was captured.

"Mommy says I shouldn't tell stories and that it was a bear, but I saw it and I know it was a monster. Mommy says you're just a brave man who helped but I know you're an Angel because you appeared out of the air to save me. I'm sorry you got hurt. I didn't know Angels could get hurt. I hope you get better soon." Clark felt a dry kiss brush his forehead and he tried again to open his eyes but the effort was too much. The sounds faded into silence as Clark drifted back into unconsciousness.

Lex sat on the thin cushion of his bunk and brooded. He couldn't believe how quickly things had gone bad. Now the IRS had seized his assets and he was being audited. The feelers he had put out for the location of Maria and her family had gotten him nowhere. The Media was having a feeding frenzy investigating him and to top it off his father had decided to feed him to the sharks in order to save Luthorcorps. Maybe he was safer in jail, he reflected, at least there aren't any paparazzi in here, well at least not with their cameras.

Chloe fidgeted at her desk and then got up to pace again. Clark had left ten days ago and the last thing she'd heard from him was a message, "I think I found it." Oh, God… what if he's hurt somewhere, alone, in pain, dying. Tears filled her eyes and she stared at her phone willing it to ring. Then Lois had come on all sarcastic as usual. Chloe knew she hadn't meant any harm and it was probably Lois' way of expressing concern but did she always have to take the cheap shot at Clark's expense? Chloe wondered what Lois would think if she knew her anonymous source on Lex was none other than Clark Kent himself, trying to help her career. Chloe brushed the tears from her eyes and tried to get back to work. She had a Luthor to bury.

Because she planned on testifying against Lex the FBI agent offered Kate and her family protection. She assumed he meant well but after talking with Chloe Sullivan the thought of a "Safe House" wasn't very appealing. When Oliver offered her family an apartment next to the building she would be working in, complete with round the clock security and a promise to personally keep an eye out for trouble she took his offer with relief and gratitude.

Kate walked into Maria's room at their new apartment after her quiet knock had gone unanswered and found Maria asleep with her head pillowed on her notebook. She had been writing down a detailed description of her kidnapping so she could prepare her testimony against Lex. After days of very little sleep she had lost the battle with exhaustion and dropped on her desk. Barely waking her up, Kate guided her to her bed, stopping just long enough to remove Maria's shoes before tucking her in and kissing her good night.

There was light glowing red through his closed eyelids and the air smelled like warm grass and fir trees. Clark opened his eyes a little, and then shut them quickly when the sun blazed in them. He heard a man's quiet voice speaking to him, "Sorry man, didn't expect you to wake up. Here let me shade your eyes a sec. If you want to open 'em I think the glare won't be so bad now."

Clark opened his eyes again and looked into a stranger's face. The man had a blond beard and long blond hair, his smile was kind as he held his hand above Clark's eyes and Clark felt his lips curve slightly in response. He tried to talk but nothing came out, it was hard to get enough breath to speak. He felt moisture touch his lips as the man held a water bottle to his mouth. Clark drank greedily, he could feel his body screaming for the water and he couldn't get it fast enough. "Easy buddy, you don't want to choke. Look, I'll get you some more, okay?" Clark heard the man walk off and tried to turn his head to watch him go. Pain shot through his skull when he moved his head and he dropped back into darkness.

When he woke again he could tell the sun had moved by the feel of it on his face. His eyes opened immediately on the first try and he celebrated the small victory. He could see trees, sky with a few puffy clouds, and swallows darting overhead. He decided not to move his head yet but to try the rest of his body, starting with his right hand. When he wiggled his fingers it didn't hurt and he raised his hand to his face and rubbed his eyes. He bumped a bandage on his forehead that was stiff with blood.

"Welcome back," a woman's low voice murmured and Clark tried to turn his head to the voice. The move brought a wave of pain followed by nausea and he couldn't stifle a moan. A cool hand touched his face gently "Try to be still. You've been hurt pretty badly, but the fact that you're awake is promising. Are you hungry?"

At first the question didn't register but then at the thought of food his stomach growled and he tried to say yes. He licked his lips and got out the word with a breath. "Yes. Where am I?" he whispered roughly.

"I'll get you some soup." She said cheerfully, "You're in Alaska, on the banks of the Yukon River, in my camp. I'm sorry we couldn't get you to a doctor but that bear trashed our truck and cell phones don't work out here. We're due for a supply drop in another week and I can ask for a doctor then." She started to get up to get the soup and Clark reached for her. She immediately turned back to him and lightly took his hand. "You're going to be okay." She reassured, "I've never seen anyone heal so fast."

"Thank you…for helping me," Clark managed to say in between breaths. It was hard for him to get a deep breath and he realized his ribs were wrapped tight.

She squeezed his hand. "You got hurt saving our Sarah from a bear. We owe you so much, patching you up is the least we can do."

To be continued…

Reviews? possible, maybe, perhaps?


	20. Chapter 20

Previously_…"Thank you…for helping me," Clark managed to say in between breaths. It was hard for him to get a deep breath and he realized his ribs were wrapped tight. _

_She squeezed his hand. "You got hurt saving our Sarah from a bear. We owe you so much, patching you up is the least we can do." _

Stars and Water

Chapter 20

She started to stand up, "Will you be okay alone for a minute while I get the soup?"

Clark nodded and winced as the pain swept over him and slowly faded. A little hand slipped into his and he heard the girl, Sarah, say "I'll stay with him Mommy. I'll watch over him." And he recognized wide blue eyes set in a heart shaped face, topped with a nearly white mess of blond curls. The girl looked solemnly at him. "I'm glad you came back." She said.

When the woman returned the man came with her. "Paul is going to help you try to sit up, if you want to. If anything hurts, you let us know right away. Sarah sweetie, you need to move so Daddy can help him." Sarah reluctantly moved from Clark's side and watched intently as though still feeling protective of him.

Clark was a little unsure about sitting up but he was starving and eating lying down didn't sound too good. "Okay," he breathed. Paul eased his arm around behind Clark's shoulders and lifted him up slowly. Clark tried to help and was pleasantly surprised at the strength that he could feel flowing back into his body. His head hurt as he sat upright but it wasn't unbearable. The woman held the soup bowl out to him and he managed to take it without his hand trembling too much.

Clark looked into her eyes and smiled. "Thank you," he said quietly. As he ate he could feel energy entering his body and by the time he was done he felt almost normal. He wondered at that. A few hours without food shouldn't have weakened him so much. "How long was I unconscious?" he asked.

"What's your name?" the woman asked.

"Clark Kent," he answered, wondering what that had to do with it.

"My name is Rebecca and this is my husband Paul, you already met our daughter Sarah." She paused as if hesitant to answer his question. "Clark, you saved her life ten days ago."

"Ten days?" Clark was shocked, "Ten days, oh God, I need to call home."

"Phones won't work down here." said Paul, "Sometimes up the mountain you can get a brief signal but that's a good day's hike away and when I tried earlier I couldn't get a thing." He smiled apologetically at Clark, "I've been trying to get you a doctor, but the way you're healing by the time he gets here you won't need one."

A flash of fear swept through Clark. What reason could he give for his amazing healing abilities? He looked at them closely but they didn't seem to feel anything other than gratitude, compassion, and mild curiosity. He looked down at himself for the first time and gasped. His shirt hung in tatters over a chest and stomach completely swathed in bandages; his jeans were also more holes than denim, and what was left of his clothes was entirely soaked with his blood. "Wow, I guess you had a lot of patching to do." he said, touching the bandage on his chest.

"Yeah," Paul said, "We did at that. We were pretty sure you were going to… um, I mean you were pretty bad so we didn't move you, we moved camp.

Clark looked around with new eyes; it was obvious the camp was arranged with him as its center. He felt odd accepting help like this from people he didn't know. Let's face it, he thought, he had a hard time accepting help from the people he knew.

Chloe stared at the map Clark had studied before he left. Not for the first time she wished she had super speed. "Clark, where are you." She murmured. Suddenly with a familiar breeze and a shower of paperwork, Bart appeared by her side. Glancing around to see if anyone had seen him Chloe reprimanded him. "You need to be more careful."

"Good to see you too, Chloeliscious." And he gave her his impish grin. "I'm off to look for our Boy Scout who seems to be lost in the wilderness. Any hints on where I should start?"

Chloe shocked him with a fierce hug.

Lex sat facing his fifth lawyer in as many days, listening to the idiot discussing plea bargaining and trying for a shorter sentence. Didn't any of these incompetent fools know how to plead innocent and get a man to walk free? For crying out loud he had enough money to buy them a jury, a judge and life time vacation. At least he would if the IRS would release his assets. Surely they knew he'd pay them well … eventually.

The rain spattered on the window and slid down the glass in front of Maria's vacant gaze. She had been sitting there for hours staring at nothing and too tired to think. She had been forced to give up her job at the Talon when her family had accepted Oliver's offer and moved to Star City. There was nothing to occupy her time anymore, with the moving finished, Nicky happy at his new preschool, and her Mother setting up her lab at Queen Industries.

She knew she should probably eat something but she felt frozen in place, the effort to choose what to eat, much less move from the couch to prepare it, was too much for her at the moment. Somehow she felt if she just thought hard enough she could bring Clark back. She looked out the window and willed him to call, to show up at her door, to be standing behind her when she turned her head. He wasn't, and her breath caught in a sob as she rested her forehead against the cool glass and let the tears come.

Bart felt sick as he stared at the chaos around him. " Sh Clark, what have you been fighting, a tornado?" He saw the path of destruction leading north and followed cautiously, seriously worried about his friend for the first time. When he came to the cabins and saw the mangled vehicles he slowed to look around, calling nervously for Clark. The piles of bones and pools of blood that had once been human beings caught him by surprise and Bart had to cover his mouth and run to keep from being sick. He slowed to a stop and wiped his face with his hands, taking deep breaths to calm down. He was shaking and felt dizzy. On top of everything else Bart wasn't used to wilderness and the quiet bothered him. He looked at the crushed and tumbled trees that marked the path he needed to follow. "Clark, I sure hope you're alive because this place scares me and I could use your company about now."

"Clark is BIG." said Sarah looking up at her new friend. After a meal and more rest he had managed to stand, leaning on Paul for support and balance. He looked down with a smile at Sarah, a tiny and delicate child, reaching a little above his knees. She looked up at him in awe a moment and then grinned and hugged his leg. "You'll be able to fly again soon." She said.

"Sarah," her father said, "Remember what we told you?"

Sarah sighed, grown-ups could be so blind. "Clark is a normal man." she said, but her tone of voice clearly showed she didn't believe it.

"I want to try walking a little," Clark said to Paul. Paul nodded and wrapped his arm around Clark's waist, letting Clark drape his arm across his narrow shoulders and slowly guided him around the camp.

Sarah walked with them after having been convinced to let go of his leg. She seemed satisfied with leading the way and moving anything she thought might be an obstacle to her hero.

Clark was frustrated with his weakness, although He was healing fast and his strength was returning, his head still ached and sometimes he got so dizzy he nearly collapsed. He also got easily tired, a rare occurrence for Clark. He was determined to push himself hard until he was back to normal and could go home. He couldn't imagine how worried the people he loved must be. Thinking of the pain he was putting them through made him try again and again to stand, to walk, pushing through the weakness until his body betrayed him and he sagged in Paul's arms.

Paul looked at his face and saw the exhaustion and pain Clark was fighting. "You'd better rest man, or you'll be back at square one." he said, and when Clark reluctantly agreed he led him back to his bed by the fire and eased him onto the air mattress. "Sarah, will you please get Clark some water?" Paul asked the eager child. She sprinted to the cooler and returned with two bottles.

"One for you, and one for Daddy because he's tired too." She said, beaming proudly while she handed Clark his water. Clark thanked her and her smile blazed even brighter. Unable to stand still while so happy, she scampered over to her mother and chattered happily to her about Clark.

Bart walked into camp in time to see Paul helping Clark lie back down carefully so he didn't hurt his head. Bart's eyes opened wide at the condition of Clark's clothes and the amount of bandaging he saw covering his friend. "Wow Clark, what happened to you, man?" he asked loudly.

Clark sat up quickly "Bart!" he yelled and then he moaned and grabbed his head in his hands.

"Are you a friend of Clark's" asked Paul with his arm still wrapped protectively around Clark's shoulders.

"You betcha!" said Bart, approaching, "Been looking all over for the big guy." He looked closely at Clark. "Dude, everybody is going nuts with worry. Maybe they were right, you look pretty awful."

"Thanks Bart," mumbled Clark through his hands. He looked up at Bart and managed a weak smile, "Nice bedside manner. I feel so much better now."

"He's pretty badly hurt but he's a lot better than he was. He's lucky to be alive. " Paul spoke up "A bear mauled him when he got in between it and our girl Sarah."

"A bear huh?" said Bart looking thoughtful, then he caught Clark's eye and said, "Oh, a bear! Yeah, must have been a big one."

"Chloe, where the hell is Smallville?" Lois burst out as she strode up to Chloe at her desk at the Planet, "He's always around underfoot and I haven't seen him in days." Lois looked worried even though she tried to just look annoyed.

Think fast, Chloe thought, "Ummm, he went camping ummm, backpacking actually."

Lois narrowed her eyes and looked at Chloe. "And you are freaking out because our favorite Prince of Plaid is hiking? I don't buy it Chloe."

"He's late getting back and I don't know why…" began Chloe but Lois interrupted.

"He's lost! How late is he? Chloe, we should be looking for him. He could be hurt or, well we need to call out some help and go find him! Knowing Clark he tripped and fell down some cliff." Lois was really getting worked up and Chloe was surprised at her intensity, she also noticed Lois had called him Clark. Well this was interesting. She filed it all away for future thought.

"Lois, he has people looking for him." Said Chloe calmly, "I'm sure they'll find him and when they do I'll be sure to let you know. Okay?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Lois stammered as she tried to backtrack. "It's not that I'm worried or anything. It's just that he's fun to pick on. He's one of the very few men who seem to actually enjoy my mouth. Wait, that didn't come out right."

To be continued…

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	21. Chapter 21

Stars and Water

Chapter 21

Clark wanted to leap up and run home with Bart. Just seeing him there gave Clark new determination. As soon as he rested a little he was going to go, he just needed to close his eyes for a second and he'd be fine, he thought. Paul, feeling Clark's body trembling with exhaustion, gently helped him lay back on the mattress. It felt so good to lie down; his head didn't hurt as much when he held still. He wanted to talk to Bart but he was so tired. Clark fought the darkness closing in on him but it won in the end.

"He needs to rest." said Paul quietly, guiding Bart away from Clark with a light hand on his elbow. "He lost a lot of blood and he was unconscious for ten days, really it's a miracle he's alive at all. If you had seen what he looked like when we found him you'd understand."

The image of Clark, horribly torn up and lying in a pool of his own blood came into Paul's mind. They hadn't expected him to survive an hour. The injuries had been overwhelming and he and Rebecca had worked for hours just to put him back together and wrap him up. By the time they were done Clark had stopped bleeding but Paul had noticed how pale he was and was afraid he'd stopped because there wasn't any blood left.

Clark needed stitches, he needed a transfusion, he had broken ribs and his head was obviously injured. Paul didn't even want to think about the internal injuries they had tried to patch up. They weren't doctors but he knew enough to understand how bad off Clark was and he felt helpless as he sat and watched this brave young man struggle to live. Looking at Sarah just brought home how much they owed him, if Clark looked like this, Sarah would have been torn in two if the bear had gotten to her. Paul still didn't understand how Clark had survived, much less healed so quickly, but he felt it was a miracle and he was so glad Clark was okay he was a little afraid to question it.

Sarah saw Clark lay back down and went to him. Noticing he was asleep she settled in to watch over him. No bugs were going to bother him if she could help it and if he needed anything she would be right there.

Bart looked over his shoulder at Clark's pale face below the bandages, yeah, he understood. Clark looked totally messed up. "Look I've got some of Clark's friends nearby and I'm going to go let them know he's alive and see if we can get him out of here. I'll be back with help, okay?"

Relief washed over Paul, someone who knew what they were doing could take over Clark's care, and yet he didn't want to just let him disappear and never know what became of him. "That's great Bart, we'll be waiting." He said.

Clark was in a nightmare, it was in the woods and trees were flying around him and he was surrounded by a horrible roaring wail that rose in pitch until he had to slap his hands over his ears to try and shield them. Then he was running after a dark, rippling form that moved faster than he could and left devastation in its wake. Fear tore through him as he saw the cabins and he tried to get there before the phantom but he couldn't beat it. He watched in growing horror as a woman stepped out on the porch holding a baby. The image was so horrible his mind couldn't hold it, blood and screaming and Clark barreling into the phantom with all he had and being ripped and thrown aside. Lying stunned and helpless for a moment as more people came to see what was wrong and got caught up and destroyed. Then the phantom had moved on before Clark could even try using the crystal and he was left in the carnage, sobbing.

Sarah heard Clark moan and she gently patted his cheek with her hand. She understood nightmares; she had them all the time. Lying down carefully next to him she wrapped her tiny arm around him and murmured reassuringly just like her Mommy did when she had bad dreams.

Bart ran as fast as he could to find Mrs. Kent. It seemed to him she was the first one he should tell that her son was alive but needed help. When he got to her office in Washington they told him the Senate had taken a recess and she was at home in Smallville. He decided to go see Chloe on the way, maybe she'll give me a kiss this time, he thought hopefully, remembering the hug. When he got to the planet he ran into, literally, Lois.

"Ow!" she exclaimed, "Where did you come from!" and she glared at him. Bart cringed, this girl was frightening. "You might want to try opening your eyes next time!" she snapped "and what are you doing by Chloe's desk?"

"I, um" He had to clear his throat and look away from her to get a word out. "I'm looking for Chloe, do you know where she is?" he decided to try his most appealing look on her, maybe he could charm her into helping him.

Lois looked at him coldly, "Who are you and why do you want to see my cousin so bad?"

Or not, "My name is Bart, I'm a friend of Clark's and…"

Lois interrupted "Are you one of the people he went hiking with because really, you should have called, everyone has been worried sick, well except me of course, I don't worry about Smallville, he just drives me nuts. So, is he back safe and sound? I'm going to kill him for worrying m…Chloe like that. What?" She glared at Bart again.

"You must be Lois," he said, "Clark was right, you do talk a lot." He kept forging ahead while her mouth was still hanging open. "Look I really need to talk to Chloe, she's expecting me. Do you know where I can find her?"

Lois gave in and told him, "She went to see Mrs. Kent, in Smallville."

Bart grinned, "Thanks!"

"Don't mention it." Lois grumbled as she walked away. Bart disappeared the moment she turned, pouring on the speed, heading for Smallville and the Kent farm.

Clark woke up with a start to find Sarah sound asleep with her head pillowed on his arm and her little hand on his chest. The nightmare was still with him and he had to take deep breaths to contain his emotions. He didn't really remember all that had happened while fighting the phantom but he knew he had just remembered some of it. Seeing the people die while he was helpless to stop it had hurt him as badly as his physical injuries and would probably take longer to heal. He looked at Sarah as she slept trustingly snuggled against him and felt a little of her peace seep into his heart. He was so glad he had at least managed to save her and the people who loved her from the phantom.

Rebecca approached and stooped down, brushing Sarah's curls off her forehead. "It's her naptime." she explained, "Is she disturbing you? Do you want me to move her?" she looked into Clark's face and thought about how much Sarah was drawn to him. It's not only that he saved her life she thought; there is something special about this young man. Normally she would feel uncomfortable having her daughter latch onto a stranger like this but instead she felt relieved whenever Sarah was with Clark.

Clark smiled at Rebecca, "She's fine where she is. Let her sleep."

Rebecca nodded "Maybe you can get some more rest too, there's no knowing when your friends will come and you'll need your strength if you're going very far." She moved away and Clark allowed himself to relax, basking in the thought of going home.

Maria pulled decided to distract herself with her guitar. She was just beginning to relax, concentrating on the notes when the phone rang and she broke a string. She flew to the phone and her hand trembled as she held it to her ear and listened to Chloe's voice saying the words she had prayed to hear for days.

"He's alive! Oh thank God…" gasped Maria and she had to sit down suddenly. "Yes I want to come, thank you Chloe," and she began to sob, "I'll be fine, really, thank you." And she hung up the phone, wiped her eyes and ran to change her clothes before her trip to Smallville.

Clark woke up to the sound of a small plane landing on the nearby river. He rolled on his side and pushed himself up with difficulty and found himself face to face with a tearful Sarah.

"You're leaving." She said sadly, "I don't want you to go."

Clark gathered her up in a hug. "I have to go sweetie, my Mom is worried about me, and I need to go home."

Sarah understood about mothers. "I'm going to miss you," she sniffed, and then she burst out crying "Who will keep me safe from the monsters? Daddy can't, he doesn't even think they're real!"

"Sarah, I won't let any monsters get near you ever again." promised Clark firmly. "I'm going to make sure they never hurt anyone again."

Sarah shoved her hand down deep into her pocket and reached out to him with his crystal filling her palm. "You're going to need your light to beat them." She said solemnly.

"Sarah, thank you!" Clark took it into his own hand with relief. "How did you find it?"

Sarah looked down and didn't answer right away. "I was gonna keep it 'cause it's pretty."

Clark smiled at her as she glanced sideways at him to see if he was mad. "It's okay Sarah, I'm just glad you gave it back to me," she turned to face him again as he said, "and you're right, I do need it to win." She grinned and snuggled against him while he rested his head on her silky hair. That was how Bart found him moments later.

"Hey Stretch, nice to see you sitting up, eyes open and all that. The Calvary is here to take you home!" He yelled. Sarah wiggled out of Clark's arms, stood up as tall as possible with her hands on her hips, and looked at Bart with open hostility. Clark grinned at Bart's reaction as he stepped back a bit. "Whoa, down girl, I'm here to help!" he looked up at Clark, "What is it with you and women? Oh, Your Mom sent some clothes when I told her yours were trashed." said Bart, tossing a bundle of clothes in Clark's direction. "Relax man, I didn't tell her how bad off you were; just your clothes."

"Thanks Bart, did anyone else come with you?" Clark asked, looking past Bart towards the river.

"Dude, it's not like I could carry them and I didn't think you wanted to wait while we flew all the way in. I came as fast as I could, you know me, back in a flash." Bart grinned mischievously.

Clark struggled to get to his feet and Bart's grin fled as he saw how unsteady Clark was. "Hey, let me help you." He said as he put Clark's arm across his shoulder and braced himself to support his friend as they walked to the tent so Clark could change.

Once out of sight Clark gladly took off his shredded clothing. Rebecca had done her best to clean them in the river earlier and if anything that had left less fabric to wear. He'd had to put them back on because Paul, being a small, slender man, hadn't had anything that would fit him. After he removed his clothes he started on the bandages.

"Whoa Clark, are you sure that's a…oh, I guess its okay." said Bart staring at Clark's unmarred skin. "Wow, talk about quick healing! Wish I had that power. Does it hurt at all?"

"My head still hurts but the rest of me is healed." replied Clark, pulling on his favorite plaid shirt. "I must have lost a lot of blood because I still feel weak. I guess it takes time to make blood cells." He managed to dress himself okay but still needed Bart's help a few times when he lost his balance.

When they came out of the tent they found Rebecca, Paul, Sarah and the Bush Pilot gathered around Paul's little pick-up truck.

"You say a bear did all this?" asked the Pilot, shaking his head. "That must have been a world record Grizzly. Well, let's see if we can get it right side up and then try to start it."

Bart went over to help and Clark tried but no one would let him touch the truck. They sent Sarah to stand with him and she gave him a very knowing look for such a tiny girl. "You don't like not helping." She said, "Me neither." And she took hand.

With a lot of heaving, yelling and a, "One, two, three, push!" the truck was back on its tires once more. A cheer broke out when the engine roared to life. The Pilot walked over to Clark while brushing off his hands, "so, you ready to fly out of here?"

"Yes sir, I'm ready to go home." answered Clark.

The Pilot was already on board and so was Bart. Clark stopped on the river bank to say goodbye. Sarah flung herself at Clark's legs while Paul rested his hand on his shoulder and Rebecca wrapped him in a careful embrace. "I wrote our address and phone number on this piece of paper." she said, tucking it into his shirt pocket. "Let us know how you are, okay? If you ever need anything don't hesitate to call."

Clark thanked them all warmly and after crouching down for one last hug from Sarah he turned and climbed into the plane.

The next day found the family on their long drive home. They came to an area in the woods where the trees had been uprooted and tossed like straw. A chill went down Rebecca's spine, no bear could do this. They drove on and found smashed vehicles and destroyed cabins. Paul slammed on the breaks and stared. There amidst the destruction he saw a familiar bright patch of material. Part of Clark's shirt.

"See, I told you he fought a monster." said Sarah. "He beat it too. I saw him. He's special."

"Oh my God." said Rebecca, Paul was speechless. They drove the rest of the way in silence, each deep in their own thoughts about Clark.

To be continued…


	22. Chapter 22

_Wow! You're still here! Thank you for the reviews!!! I really do need the encouragement. I can tell people are reading but the only way I know that you like it is if you tell me! Thanks for taking the time!_

_This part might get confusing because I switch POV, I wanted to show it through different characters eyes. Hopefully I made it clear enough to follow?_

Stars and Water

Chapter 22

Martha stood up from the breakfast table as she heard the car pull into the driveway, she could feel her heart pounding and her knees felt like water. Car doors slammed and they could hear Bart talking as several sets of footsteps came slowly up the stairs of the porch. "Okay dude, just a few more steps and you're home safe and sound." The reply was muffled but it was definitely Clark's voice. Martha felt the sound of that beloved voice pull at the deepest place in her heart. Tears filled her eyes as she stood frozen, staring at the screen door. When it opened and she saw Clark standing there leaning on Bart she burst into motion and flung herself across the room.

"Clark!" She cried out and she wrapped her arms around her son and held on tight, rejoicing in the feel of his familiar arms around her as he hugged her back. He was trembling and Martha pulled away to look at his face and saw behind his loving eyes a desolate pain that made her pull him closer and hug him even tighter. "Everything's going to be all right baby," she murmured soothingly, "You're home and everything is going to be fine." Clark held on tight, blinking back tears, and nestled his face down into her hair as he let himself be comforted by the feel and smell of his Mom.

Bart stood back and watched their reunion, swallowing hard. If only he could go home and get a reception like that. Suddenly Chloe was hugging him, saying "Good job Bart! You brought him home, you're a hero." And then Oliver was pounding his back and grinning broadly at him in approval. Maria took both of his hands in hers and smiled through tear filled eyes as she thanked him quietly. Finally, Mrs. Kent turned to him and pulled him into a warm hug, telling him how glad she was that he was safe and how grateful she was to him for bringing her boy home. By the time they were done Bart was glowing pink and speechless with emotion.

Chloe watched with tear filled eyes as Mrs. Kent held Clark. Then her attention went to Bart and she saw the longing in his eyes as he watched the reunion of Mother and Son. Chloe's heart went out to the boy and she quickly went to him and gave him a tight hug. Then she turned to Clark as Mrs. Kent stepped away. Clark grinned at Chloe and threw his arms around her, pulling her into his embrace, giving her back a little rub. "I'm okay Chloe; you don't have to look at me like that." He said into her neck. Chloe held on tight and then stepped away, letting Oliver approach.

Oliver started to shake Clark's hand but suddenly found himself hugging Clark, patting his shoulder and saying "Thank God you're all right. Man, you scared us."

"I scared me too." Clark replied with a grin, then he saw Maria and it was as though the rest of the room faded away. Oliver noticed his expression and stepped out of the way with a smile.

"Maria," Clark breathed; there was a lump in his throat that made it hard to talk. She came to him and slid into his arms and it made him feel warm and whole again just being close to her. He bent his head to kiss her and when their lips met he realized just how much she meant to him and held on like he was never letting go. Maria's shaking ceased as she felt his strong arms around her at last. She felt the knot that had been in her stomach for days loosen and melt away at the touch of his lips. Their kiss became more passionate as they put all the love they held for each other into that long embrace.

When they finally broke the kiss and looked up slightly dazed they noticed the room was silent. Martha cleared her throat and bustled into the kitchen, smiling to herself at the love her boy had obviously found. "I'll get everyone fresh coffee." she called. As though her voice had broken a spell the room erupted in talk and laughter.

Later Clark relaxed on the couch and let the voices wash over him. It felt so good to be home, it made what he had gone through seem distant and unreal. Surely horror like that couldn't exist in the same universe with these laughing, beautiful people. As he watched them the memory of a terrified face disappearing in a spray of blood hit him and he gasped and blinked hard, holding in his emotions and trying to conceal them from his friends. Maria saw the look on his face and went to him. "Clark, what's wrong?" she said, "Are you in pain?"

Clark looked away; he didn't want to tell anyone about what he'd seen. He didn't want to burden them with the terrible images haunting him, and so he did what he usually did. He shut Maria out to protect her and told her he was fine. Maria felt him pull away and it confused her. She could tell he certainly wasn't "fine". She decided now wasn't the time to press him for answers, he looked like he was hanging on by a thread.

She took his hand and said "Clark, no one could be fine right after what you went through but you will be okay again. I promise." and she stayed by him on the couch with his hand held lightly in hers until she felt him squeeze hers in return. When she looked up at him he met her gaze and let her see what he was feeling before he pulled her closer.

"Thanks Maria," he said softly, "I hope you're right."

Oliver finished his coffee and stood up. "Come on Bart, we need to head out. Stop mooning over Chloe and get it in gear. She has a boyfriend, remember, and he's bigger than you are."

Bart just winked at Chloe, who was already grinning from the image of anyone being intimidated by Jimmy. "Oliver, everyone knows size doesn't matter, I have other gifts."

Chloe burst out laughing, "Speed isn't exactly what a girl wants either." she said, eyes twinkling.

"I was talking about my undeniable charm and dashing good looks." He said with a mock frown, "but now that you mention speed…" Bart disappeared for a moment and returned with a tulip for Chloe. "…it has its benefits. If Jimmy ever lets you go, give me a call." He laughed that he had rendered Chloe speechless and joined Oliver in saying goodbye to Clark.

They all kept it pretty light, to avoid more embarrassing emotions, and then left the house quarreling about who would drive. "No Bart, I will not teach you how to drive in my new Jaguar!" Oliver exclaimed as the door closed behind them.

Chloe stood up and prepared to go. She looked at Clark with Maria snuggled up next to him, his eyes were closed and his head rested against the back of the couch. He looked completely exhausted, but he was alive, he was home, and that was what mattered.

Just as she turned to talk to Martha the kitchen door flew open and Lois walked in. "Where is he? I just got your message Chloe, and I came as fast as I could. Oh!" and Lois stared at Clark and Maria on the couch. Maria had opened her eyes and was looking at Lois with irritation but Clark didn't even flinch, he had fallen asleep and he was so tired he didn't hear her.

Lois swallowed hard; she had never seen Clark like this. He looked pale and there were dark circles under his eyes. Lois turned to Martha. "Shouldn't he be in a hospital? He looks terrible! Seriously, he could be suffering from shock or dehydration or something!" She looked at him again, and felt an odd jolt at the way his arm was draped around Maria's shoulders. How ridiculous, she couldn't be jealous over Smallville. She must just be tired, yes, and nicotine deprived.

Lois found herself stepping close to him and she watched her hand as though it belonged to someone else, reaching out to touch his face. When he opened his eyes she yanked her hand back as though it had been burned and scowled down at him. "Well Smallville, it took you long enough to get home! While you were out there playing Daniel Boone your friends were worried sick about you!"

Maria was ready to launch, like a puma ready to pounce on a deer. She could feel her muscles bunching as rage poured into her, only to be shocked into silence by Clark's laugh.

"Lois, I didn't know you cared!" he said, raising one eyebrow, a teasing tone in his voice.

Maria blinked as she saw Clark beaming at Lois as though he had won some kind of game. He was enjoying this! Clearly there was more going on between these two than she'd thought at first and she wasn't sure she liked it. She felt Clark's arm pulling her closer and wondered if he had sensed her tension.

Chloe had been watching and felt now would be a good time to intervene, especially since Lois looked about to unleash one of her famous, punch Smallville in the shoulder, moves. Chloe had the feeling that Maria would uncoil and strike if that were to happen. "Lois, we should go and let Clark rest. I have a scoop about Lex that I've been dying to share with you. How about we drive back together to Metropolis and I'll fill you in?"

Lois stood looking at Clark for a minute. With that smug look on his face he was looking much more like the Clark Kent she knew. Maybe he didn't need a hospital. When she saw him pull Maria close with a tender expression and brush her forehead with his lips Lois suddenly felt ready to leave with Chloe.

After they left Clark heaved a sigh and let his head drop back against the couch. "Do you want to rest here for a while? I could get you a pillow and blanket." said Maria quietly.

"No, what I really want is a shower. I'm just gathering my energy to tackle the stairs." Clark rested for a moment more and then struggled up to stand, swaying a little.

Maria was up in a second, holding Clark's arm and insisting, "Here let me help."

Clark shook her hand off and said harshly, "No, I can do it myself." Then he looked down apologetically at her stricken face, "Maria, I'm sorry. I'll be fine. Just let me do this on my own, Okay?"

Maria nodded and backed off, clenching her fists to her sides and willing her feet still as Clark climbed laboriously up the steps. She heard the bathroom door close and she let out the breath she had been holding and looked up to see Martha watching her with understanding. "Jonathan was the same way. Kent men are terribly stubborn and independent, they love to help others but they hate to accept help themselves." Martha smiled reassuringly. "Why don't you come on into the kitchen? I'm going to make Clark his favorite apple pie for tonight and we can talk."

Maria gladly accepted and when Clark came back downstairs he smelled a freshly baked pie and heard his Mom and Maria laughing and talking in the kitchen while they cleaned up. He stood and listened to the sound of their voices blending and the easy way they laughed together, it made him feel wonderful listening to the way the two women he loved got along.

Maria spent the day at the Kent farm. After she and Martha finished in the kitchen Clark asked her to walk outside with him and she noticed as he stepped into the full sun he stood taller and shrugged his shoulders back as if he gained energy. Shelby ran up and they played with him for a while, throwing the Frisbee and laughing at his attempts to catch it in midair. Maria watched Clark's face and reveled in the happiness she saw there as he wrestled with his dog.

Clark showed her around the farm proudly, introducing her to the cows, chickens, horses, even the barn cats, which all seemed to come close as soon as they heard Clark's voice. "I feed them" he shrugged, but Maria felt it was more than that. Clark was always quiet and calm when he spoke to an animal; she felt the animals knew who to trust.

The sun was beginning to go down when Clark pulled at her hand.

"Come on, I have something I want to show you." Clark said as he tugged her towards the barn. She looked at the barn doubtfully and followed him inside. When they entered and Clark ascended the stairs easily she could barely contain her surprise. He seemed to have recovered quite a lot just by spending the day walking around his home and soaking up the summer sun. When she got to the top of the stairs she was delighted to find a loft with a beautiful view of the sunset.

"This is lovely Clark." She said, leaning against the window sill to look out and taking a deep breath of the warm, sweet scented air. She turned to see Clark looking out the window with a distant look in his eye. Something about his stillness alarmed her and she rubbed his back and asked quietly, "You okay Clark?"

Without looking at her Clark answered "I'm fine," then he sighed and said "I just suddenly missed my Dad, he built this place for me, called it my fortress of solitude. He was always the one I would go to when things got to be too much for me. Now I don't, well, I just miss him." Clark looked down at Maria and she saw his eyes shining from unshed tears.

"Yeah, I know what you mean." She said, "It can sneak up on you and hit you when you least expect it. You'll think you're fine and then something will remind you and you hurt all over again." Clark looked at her a little surprised, it was the first time since she had told him about her father that she had mentioned him and he could see how much it cost her by the way she swallowed hard and blinked up at him through her tears. Clark pulled her close and tucked her forehead into his shoulder, kissing her neck and stroking her hair soothingly.

"Can you tell me about what's bothering you?" she asked, "I know I'm not your father but maybe it would help to just have someone listen."

Clark shook his head, "I don't want to tell you. It's too awful and I don't want you to have these images in your mind."

Maria reached up to stroke his face; she was worried about the look of desolation that had come back to his eyes. If he were anyone else she would suggest counseling but it wasn't as though he could share any of his experiences with a psychologist, he'd end up in Bellreeve within minutes. "Clark I can handle a lot more than you think but I'm not going to push you to tell me. Maybe talking to your Mom or Chloe would be easier. I just don't think it's good to keep it all inside." She wrapped her arms around him and held him close, trying silently to give all her love and support through her hug.

Clark felt something inside him let loose at her silence and suddenly found himself talking about his fight with the Phantom. How frightened he had been, how it felt to follow in the wake of such destruction, the horror of seeing people die before his eyes and finally how it had felt when he was holding himself together with one hand and aiming the crystal with the other, feeling his blood gushing out of the wounds in his chest and stomach and terrified that he would die before he captured the phantom and it would be free to wreak havoc on the world. He shared his guilt at having set the phantoms free in the first place and how alone he felt when fighting them. Once he started talking the words rushed out of him along with tears and it was all she could do to just listen and not cry along with him. Somehow she knew if she wanted him to continue to talk her best course of action was complete stillness and so she listened and held him until his words came to a halt in a gasping sob.

To be continued…

Reviews? Please?


	23. Chapter 23

Stars and Water

Chapter 23

_Thank you for the reviews!! Sorry this chapter is shorter than I thought. I'll post another one soon. Promise…_

Martha came out to the barn to tell Clark and Maria that dinner was ready. When she approached the loft she could hear Clark talking and she felt her heart wrench at the raw pain in his voice. She looked up and saw Maria holding him as he cried and she swallowed a lump in her throat. She was surprised and relieved he had opened up to Maria, she must be really special to him if he felt he could share this much of himself with her, Martha thought. Deciding to give them a moment she headed back to the house, dinner could wait in the oven.

Clark felt like a weight had been lifted off of him, and he relaxed at last. He felt Maria's hands stroking his back and heard her murmur his name and he bent his head and kissed her in a soft thank you. They walked back to the house with their arms draped around each other, neither of them ready to move apart.

Martha had settled in to watch the news while she waited for Clark and Maria. She looked up at the sound of the screen door and studied her son for any sign of the pain she had heard him expressing. Instead she saw peace and she breathed a sigh of relief. "Let me just pop dinner out of the oven and we'll eat" said Martha heading into the kitchen.

Later as they ate Martha decided it was time for a talk, she wanted to know more about this young woman her son was obviously deeply involved with. "So Maria are you headed back to College in the fall?" she asked, the way Clark looked up Martha knew he was as interested in the answer as she was.

"Umm, I'm not sure." said Maria, pushing her food around on her plate and glancing at Clark, "I was looking into the Peace Corps before we moved to Smallville. I wanted to do something that would make a difference in the world and it just felt like the right thing to do but now, I don't know." She caught his eyes and swallowed hard, once upon a time it had been her dream to go. Now, how on earth could she ever leave him and go halfway around the world?" I applied at Met U and although it was late I may get in."

"Really?" asked Clark, looking hopeful, "I thought it was too late to apply this year." Martha was happy to note he seemed interested in going back to school. Maybe Maria will be a good influence on him, she thought.

"Apparently they just repaired the campus after a really weird blackout, there was a lot of damage and some of the students were too scared to return, so there are openings." Maria noticed the expression on Clark's face when she mentioned the blackout, he looked so sad and oddly guilty. Then Martha had given him a look of sympathy and support. "I think if you want to go you could probably get in Clark," Maria said, struggling to sound casual and not to beg him to go with her.

Martha watched as the look of hope became excitement as he allowed himself to picture going to Met U with Maria. Then the look died and he clenched his jaw, Martha knew just what he was thinking. "Clark, someone else can take care of the farm. Please don't let that stop you from moving forward in your life." Clark nodded, he knew she was right but it was so hard to let go. He didn't want to leave the farm, he felt close to his father there, still he'd been feeling a pull to go, to do something more. Maybe it was time to go back to school and get that degree in journalism like he'd planned.

By the time dinner was over Martha had decided she really liked Maria. They'd had fun earlier in the kitchen together but now she had seen Maria interact more with Clark and she liked what she saw. Clark had become more relaxed as dinner progressed and Martha noticed that Maria tended to say things to make him smile or laugh. She picked on him in a gentle flirty way and Clark responded with his own sense of humor. Soon they were all laughing together and Martha realized she hadn't seen him like this in a very long time.

After pie and ice cream Maria and Clark insisted on cleaning up and Martha let them, relaxing in her favorite chair and reading a report on Agriculture and Free Trade as they worked together in the kitchen.

"Hey, no fair using super speed to wash!" came Maria's voice, "how can I possibly keep up?" Martha almost dropped the report.

"Well then I'll help you dry." said Clark.

"Wow, that must be handy, its amazing how accurate you can be with your heat vision." said Maria, "is it hard to do? Did you have to practice a lot?"

"Now that I've learned how to control it I can use it without thinking too much. I did start a few fires while learning." Clark found it a little hard to get used to talking so freely with someone about his powers. It felt good though, really good, to be open and not have to lie.

"Okay, I think we're done!" said Maria triumphantly, then she squealed and said giggling, "Clark Kent, put me down." followed by silence and then Maria said in a slightly breathless voice, "What was that for?"

"Do I need a reason?" asked Clark, "Fine, because you make me happy," and he kissed her, "because you're beautiful," followed by another kiss, "you taste good," and he kissed her again. There was a moment of silence and Martha tried to go back to reading her report but her head jerked up and her eyes opened wide when she heard what Clark said next. "Because I love you," he said softly.

Martha felt tears come into her eyes when she heard Maria respond "I love you too."

After thanking Martha and kissing Clark goodbye, and kissing Clark goodbye and making it to her car and kissing him goodbye through the window, Maria headed for home. She'd easily convinced him to come to Metropolis in a couple of days and check out Met U with her. She couldn't wait.

Clark stepped back inside and stood looking at his Mom. When she glanced up at him with a neutral expression on her face he came and sat on the couch. He rubbed his hands up and down his pant legs nervously and let out a breath giving her the chance to speak first if she had something she wanted to say. Martha decided to wait and see what he chose to tell her first. Silence filled the room and Clark's foot jiggled up and down.

"So you probably figured out I told Maria my secret…"Clark started out courageously and then lost steam, looking to see her reaction.

Martha was also struggling with how to respond. On the one hand she was glad he had found love, on the other she felt they hardly knew this girl and the danger to Clark frightened her deeply. She really missed Jonathan in moments like this. "I can tell you love and trust each other very much." she said, "I hope you aren't moving too fast."

Clark understood what she meant. "Mom, I can't say Maria is the one I'm going to spend my life with, but I know I love her and I want to see if maybe she is." Martha nodded. Clark stood up and gave his Mom a hug goodnight. She held him just a little longer than usual and then let him go and watched him walk easily up the stairs to bed.

To be continued…


	24. Chapter 24

_Thanks for the reviews, it's really encouraging. You all are amazing for sticking with me so far._

Stars and Water

Chapter 24

Clark met Maria on the steps of the Daily Planet. He was standing there in the full sun with his head thrown back looking up at the building when she first saw him. He looks like he's about to lift off, she thought as she approached. Clark recognized the sound of her footsteps and turned to her with a brilliant smile. "Maria!" he said and the way he said her name made her melt.

"Hey Clark," she replied, sliding into his arms for a hug. They kissed lightly and then turned to go into the building. Clark kept his arm resting around Maria's waist as they walked inside and she leaned into him briefly. She had missed him in those few days apart, as though she couldn't be fully herself without him near. They had talked on the phone a few times but it just didn't help, in fact it made it worse because she wanted to climb right through the handset to be with him.

A feeling of peace washed over Clark at having Maria near and he kept his arm around her waist as they walked, reluctant to let go of her any time soon. Reaching Chloe's desk they found her surrounded by stacks of paper and typing madly.

"Hey Chloe, ready for lunch?" asked Clark when she looked up and blinked at them as though coming back from another world.

"Lunch? Is it time for lunch already?" she looked at her computer and started to type in just one more sentence as Clark grinned. Jimmy came up behind her and pulled her chair away from the desk.

"Step away from the computer Chloe. Even Woodward and Bernstein ate occasionally." and Chloe reluctantly removed her hands from the keyboard.

"Fine, but it better be good!" she said as she stood up with her eyes still scanning the screen distractedly.

"You should know. You picked the place." said Jimmy with a kiss on her cheek. "Now come be social for a little while. I promise to get you back to work in an hour." Chloe allowed herself to be led away from the computer and they all walked out into the sun together.

At the restaurant Maria listened with interest as they ate Chinese food and talked. Chloe and Jimmy seemed to know everything that went on in Metropolis and had the inside scoop on stories that hadn't hit the papers yet. Clark also was talking animatedly and she enjoyed seeing how his mind put facts together and came up with insights that the others hadn't considered. He'll be a good journalist, she realized, he's as at home here as he is on his farm.

"It was great to see you two," Clark said as he stood up and helped pull out Maria's chair, "We better go if we are going to get to the campus and explore. Besides, I have somewhere else I want to take Maria first." Clark grinned excitedly. "The Planetarium has a new exhibit that is just going up and I want to get in before the crowds hit."

Chloe and Jimmy stood up too and Chloe gave Clark a hug. She pulled back and looked into his eyes and grinned, it was so good to see him happy. Clark smiled back; he knew exactly what she was thinking. Then Chloe turned to Maria and surprised her with a hug. Maria returned it happily, she felt like she was being approved of by family.

After a slow drive across town, during which Maria stared out the window at the amazing city and Clark watched Maria taking it all in, they pulled up in front of the Metropolis Planetarium. Maria could tell this place meant a lot to Clark and as they proceeded through the exhibits she became caught up by his enthusiasm and looked at it all with interest.

They were standing in front of a beautiful star map and Clark was pointing out the constellations he knew and telling her the mythology that went with them when a load of crates came trundling in. Maria turned to see what the odd noise was and nearly fell when Clark's full weight hit her shoulder. She turned and grabbed at him as he slid to the floor with a strangled gasp of pain.

"Clark! My God Clark, what's wrong?" Maria fell to her knees next to Clark's writhing body. He was struggling for breath and trying to say her name. She gently stroked his face. "Clark, please tell me how I can help you. What is hurting you?"

Clark's body shuddered and he moaned as his eyes drifted shut. He struggled to open them but they were too heavy. He could hear Maria's frantic voice and he wanted to answer her but he didn't have the strength. He needed all he had left just to breathe. Clark felt that all too familiar feeling of nausea and grinding agony that meant there was Kryptonite somewhere near, a lot of Kryptonite. He tried to tell Maria but couldn't speak. Darkness was closing in on him fast and he struggled against it.

Maria watched in horror as his body trembled, and then went still and his gasping breaths slowed to a near stop, coming very far apart. What had hurt her invincible Clark Kent? She didn't know what to do and she didn't have any time to make a mistake.

Clark was pale and sweating, his skin icy to the touch and his heart beat faint and erratic. It was all absolutely wrong for her always warm and vibrant Clark.

Maria yanked her cell phone out of her purse with trembling hands and prepared to dial 911. She had actually entered the numbers but stopped just short of pressing CALL. What was she thinking? She couldn't send him to a hospital! Maria choked back a sob feeling suddenly very lost. She needed to be calm, Clark needed her to think, she brushed the tears from her eyes with impatient hands and glared at her phone.

She knew if anyone would know what was wrong it would be Martha Kent but she was so far away. Who was closer that could come help? Chloe then, Chloe had known Clark's secret for years, she had to know something that would help him. Maria stroked Clark's face again and the sight of him in such pain had her so rattled she couldn't remember Chloe's number.

She thought a moment and then pulled Clark's phone from his pocket. "Clark, you're going to be all right. I'm going to call Chloe; she'll know what to do." Maybe he could hear her; maybe it would comfort him to hear her. She pulled up his menu and saw #1 Chloe Sullivan, it gave her a little jolt of jealousy for the first time to see Chloe's name above hers in his speed dial.

She looked at Clark's face and swallowed hard, as if speed dial numbers were important now, she thought. She pressed the number and prayed, Chloe please pick… before she even finished her thought Chloe answered. "Hey Clark! What did you do, get lost on campus?"

Maria cut in "Chloe, Clark's sick and I don't know what to do!" She yelled frantically into the phone, and then she adjusted her volume and continued "I don't know what's hurting him…oh…what's Kryptonite?" Maria looked frantically around "I don't see any glowing green rocks. Chloe I don't see anything like that."

Looking up at the huge crate that had just been rolled in behind them Maria gasped in horror, an eerie green glow was emanating through the cracks between the slats "Chloe do you mean meteors? They just brought in a huge crate and the display plate says it's the largest known intact Meteor to hit Smallville." She looked back at Clark. He looked worse, if that were possible, his face had gone greenish gray and his skin looked bruised.

"Chloe I think he's dying! What do I do?" Maria's voice was shaking, her body wracked with shivers as cold flooded her at the sight of Clark lying so still. She listened to Chloe and feeling a little calmer after her reassurances and instructions she quickly stuffed both phones in her pockets.

"Okay Clark. Chloe says you need to get outside away from that meteor and into the sun so I'm going to be pulling you out of here." Maria reassured Clark, caressing him with trembling hands and trying to sound confident that she could do this. Hearing a sound she looked up and realized a small crowd of people had gathered, looking on with sympathy and offering help, but she hadn't heard them.

"Please, he's um, having a seizure and needs to be outside away from the, um…the artificial lights. Can you help me move him?" she asked. Instantly hands reached out to lift him and using her hands to gently support his head she directed them out the door and to the sun filled slab of marble that served as a top step.

Maria thanked the strangers who had helped and gently encouraged them to leave. She was worried someone had called an ambulance but so far none showed up. Quiet descended as the people wandered back inside. Maria looked closely at Clark. The change that occurred when they got him out of the building and into the sunlight was miraculous. The pain in his face vanished and his breathing became easy, his entire body relaxing onto the warm marble.

Sinking down next to him she cradled his head in her lap and gently stroked his face. "Come back to me Clark." she murmured, "everything is going to be okay now sweetie, just open your eyes and come back." She watched as his skin flushed with color and the dark circles disappeared from under his eyes. His body was warm again and the sweat evaporated from his skin.

She could feel the tension leave her own body as she watched him recover, going from looking like death to looking like a sleeping child. His face was so beautiful and innocent in the sunlight she felt her heart turn over as his eyelashes fluttered against his cheeks. "Clark?" she touched his cheek with her fingertips and saw his eyes blink slowly open. "Hey, welcome back sweetheart, how are you feeling?" she said softly.

Clark turned his head and focused on her face, "A little dizzy and weak but okay. What happened?" He thought about trying to sit up but decided that there were worse places to be than laying in the sun with his head in Maria's lap, and he was tired.

"You just came in contact with the world's largest intact meteor. I'd recommend you wait until this exhibit has moved to another planetarium before you return to the main hall."

Clark looked apologetically at Maria, "Sorry, Meteor rocks make me sick." he said.

"A fact you might have shared with me before I found myself watching you die. I couldn't help you because I didn't know how!" said Maria, her voice rising. Now that she could see he was going to be okay a wave of anger washed over her and she let it loose on Clark.

Clark slowly stood up with her help and began to pace, he could feel his energy return, and his strength. He was back to normal, well, normal for him. "Maria I've never told anyone about Kryptonite voluntarily, even Chloe found out by accident. I'm not used to talking about things like this and I hate telling you things that will make you see me as even more…" Clark paused, "More weird than I already am."

All her anger fled as she saw the sadness on his face. "Clark I don't see you as weird, I see you as wonderful. You aren't supposed to be just like a human, you need to be who you truly are. Sweetie it's like an eagle trying to be a…a hamster. Who cares if you can't run on a wheel, you're meant to fly."

Clark stared at her, speechless. Somehow he always thought he would find love when he found someone who would overlook the things about him that were different, someone who would treat him as though he were human and normal. That had been what he wanted from Lana, to feel like he was just like everyone else. What Maria said made him feel anything but normal and human, and yet he felt completely accepted and loved. He smiled at her. "but I like hamsters, they're cute and fuzzy…"

"Oh stop it, you know what I meant, I was trying to make a point and I couldn't think of anything else." Maria rolled her eyes and Clark reached out and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a kiss.

"Yes, I know what you mean." he murmured

To be continued…

Reviews???? Please??


	25. Chapter 25

_Thank you for the review!! I was beginning to wonder if anyone was still reading… Just for that I'm posting an update as fast as I can! Enjoy…_

Stars and Water

Chapter 25

At the sound of screaming brakes Clark whipped around and stepped in front of Maria. A car door slammed and Maria peeked around Clark's shoulder in time to see a petite blond woman charging up the steps. Chloe came to a panting halt in front of Clark.

"You're…okay." she gasped, sounding suddenly exhausted. Chloe sat down heavily on the steps and Clark sat down next to her, putting his arm around her shoulder and giving it a squeeze.

"I'm okay." he said simply, watching her face a little anxiously, he could hear her heart thundering in her chest. Clark gave her a reassuring smile and he heard it slow down.

Maria sat on the other side of Chloe and took her hand. "I should have called you back. I'm so sorry, I wasn't thinking." Chloe studied her. Maria looked exhausted too, her eyes were red from crying and her voice was hoarse and still a little shaky.

"Don't worry about it. You did fine, obviously." and she gestured in Clark's direction.

"I don't know what I would have done without your help." said Maria, "I was so scared and I didn't know what was wrong and Clark was, Clark couldn't," she swallowed hard and tried not to cry again as the image of Clark writhing in pain flashed in her mind. "and then I almost called an ambulance, what if they had found out Clark's secret because of me? I had to come up with a lie about why he was on the floor and I was terrified he would die and I was afraid someone would come and take him and…" Maria was talking faster as she let out the fear she had felt but tried to hold back during the crisis.

Chloe squeezed her hand. "It's okay Maria, you did good. Welcome to a very exclusive club, The Clark Kent secrets and lies club. It can be hard to be a member but it's never dull." Clark listened to them talk and felt a stab of guilt and sorrow, now Maria would have to lie for him and live in fear that she would slip up and betray him. Why was he such a fool, he should never have tried to hope things would work out between them.

"Maria, if we don't pull an intervention right now Clark is going to commence beating himself up over this and the next thing you know he will attempt to break up with you to protect you." Chloe said, to Maria but she was looking at Clark the entire time.

Maria looked at Clark, Chloe was right, he was blaming himself. "Clark Kent, don't you dare even go there." she warned. "I'm strong enough to deal with this. I love you and you are already an important part of my life. Don't underestimate me!" Her voice was no longer shaky, there was steel in it and Clark looked up, astonished at the change, to see her smiling at him with a look of determination in her eye.

Whoa, Chloe thought, I think our Mr. Kent has met his match. Her eyes twinkled as she watched him. Good girl, she thought as she saw his expression go from gloom and sadness to amazement. Why is it so hard for the guy to accept how much we care about him? She thought.

"Well, I don't know about you two but my butt's getting tired of stone and I need a Latte, you want to come with?" Chloe stood and stretched, brushing off her behind with a wiggle that distracted several young men coming through the door behind her.

They headed to a nearby coffee shop and relaxed together until Chloe headed back to the Planet. Clark and Maria continued on to the Met U campus with Clark holding Maria's hand and watching her surreptitiously to be sure she was recovered, and Maria doing the same.

Met U had a large and sprawling campus and Maria and Clark explored most of it trying to find the office of the head of the journalism department. It was worth the long walk because after meeting with him Clark had everything he needed to apply and information about scholarships that he was eligible for in the fall.

The professor had also raised Clark's hopes and renewed his excitement about the future. Maria watched as the man took to Clark instantly, giving him advice as though he was a long lost son. People seemed to open up to Clark, she thought, a good quality for a reporter to have.

After his meeting with the professor Clark amazed Maria by sitting on a bench and in minutes filling out the pile of documents. They stopped by the registrar and turned it all in before leaving campus.

"Wow Clark, you're going to finish college in a year if you can do paperwork that fast. I couldn't even read the first page. Did you even look at them? I can't believe how quickly you did the math for the scholarship forms. Was that an essay you wrote? I couldn't tell, your hand was a blur." Maria said, she hadn't realized his mind was also gifted.

"Yeah, math is easy for me to do fast but writing takes more time because I have to come up with original thoughts. I think the essay turned out okay. One of the reasons I like writing is the challenge." said Clark, "That and Chloe stayed on top of me until I got good at it. She got me hooked on journalism in high school. Her enthusiasm was pretty hard to resist." and Clark smiled, remembering the Torch. "Did you want to check anything out on campus?" he asked with a smile, "What are you going to major in?"

Maria shook her head, "I don't know," she replied, "I majored in Art at U of O so I wrote Art on my application but I might change it. I really don't know what I want to do." Maria had been quiet as they explored campus, allowing Clark's excitement to carry them both. She was happy he would be going to school with her but she was still searching for the direction she wanted to go with her life.

The sun was beginning to set when Maria and Clark got back to the Planet. Clark looked up and gasped and Maria quickly threw her arms around him. He looked down at her terrified face in confusion, "I just saw the sunset gleaming off the globe on the Daily Planet and thought it looked cool. I'm okay Maria, really." Maria swallowed hard and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Sorry Clark, I guess it's going to take a bit before I get what happened today out of my mind." she kept her arms around him and held on tight.

Clark gently wrapped her up in a hug and rested his head against her forehead. "You have nothing to apologize for Maria. I'm so sorry you were put through all that. I'm actually pretty invulnerable, and Kryptonite is rare, so try to relax. Okay?" Maria nodded.

"How did you get hurt in the river?" she asked suddenly, "was there Kryptonite there too?"

"Yes, it was on the riverbed. I tried to avoid it but when we got in the shallow water it was all over that section and I stepped right on it." Clark explained quietly. "There is a lot of Kryptonite around Smallville,

Meteor capital of the world you know, but I can usually feel it and get away before it affects me too much."

"You knew it was in the river didn't you?" Maria asked pulling back a bit to look into his face, "I saw the look on your face just before you jumped in. My God, you knew you could have died." she gave a little whimper and buried her face back against his warm body. Her emotions were raw and she couldn't seem to calm down, she didn't want to cry on him again but she couldn't stop.

"But I didn't because you saved me that time too." said Clark, stroking her back with his large warm hands, trying to help her relax. It felt odd to have someone wanting to protect him and her worry distressed him. He felt like he needed to prove to her he was okay. He wanted to appear strong in her eyes and erase the image of him helpless on the floor. "Maria, do you want to watch the sunset from the top of the Daily Planet?" Clark asked, tipping her chin up gently with his thumb so he could see her face. She was blinking back tears and Clark couldn't bear to be the cause of it.

"It would be beautiful." she replied, wondering what he was up to. The look in his eye was merry and a bit mischievous.

"Okay, hold on." He looked around carefully, and lifting her into his arms, gathered himself and leaped.

Maria gasped as he grabbed her, she could feel the power gathering in his body as he crouched and the speed of their ascent took her breath away. As they rose up along the building she clung to his strong shoulders and looked around in amazement. Was he flying, she wondered. They came to a gentle stop on the roof and she clung to him a moment before allowing him to set her down. "Wow Clark," she said, her eyes sparkling in excitement, "that was amazing! Did you just fly?"

Clark grinned, this was more like it, she was smiling again. "No," he shrugged, "I jumped."

To be continued…


	26. Chapter 26

_Thank you for the review! I hope you like this chapter. Here you go…_

Stars and Water

Chapter 26

The sun crept down below the edge of the skyline and the haze above the city ignited in shades of red and brilliant orange. Maria and Clark stood side by side watching from the top of the Daily Planet building. Maria had her arm around Clark's waist, her head resting on his shoulder while she watched the sunset. Clark's arm was draped around her shoulders, holding her close to him, and his head was tilted so that his cheek touched her silky hair.

A feeling of peace drifted through Clark, a relaxed contented feeling that always seemed to come when he was with Maria. He could tell by her breathing and heartbeat that she was equally relaxed. They stood in silence and enjoyed the moment together.

Finally Maria stirred and Clark felt her shiver a little, now that the sun had gone a cool breeze was blowing. He tucked her closer protectively and she turned to face him, wrapping both arms around his waist and looking into his eyes with a soft dreaming expression. He looked down at her in wonder, how did this happen; a few months ago he had been convinced he was destined to be alone. Now he knew that wasn't the case and the knowledge made his heart soar.

Clark beamed a sudden smile at her and Maria blinked, did he know what effect his beautiful smile had on her? She looked up at his joy filled eyes and returned his smile, easing one hand from around his waist and resting it against his cheek. Clark turned his head to kiss her palm and Maria slid her other hand around his neck, leaning into him. Clark moved one hand into the waves of hair cascading down her back and slid it up to support her head and then he kissed her tenderly. She melted into the kiss and sighed as he placed light kisses on each cheek. Then she giggled as he kissed the tip of her nose and she slowly opened her eyes as he kissed her forehead and then rested his cheek against it.

Clark's cell phone went off with a chorus of "Who let the dogs out, who… who… who…" It was so loud, blasting into their quiet moment that both Clark and Maria jumped. "It's Lois," Clark explained as he dug the phone out of his pocket, "I should take this." he said apologetically.

"Hey, Lois. Yes, as a matter of fact this is a bad time. WHAT!" Clark yelled so loud it hurt Maria's ears. "Sorry," he said in a quieter tone, "My God, I can't believe it. With all the evidence they had and the testimony they got how could it be possible? Yeah I know, money, but I thought the IRS had that all locked down. Oh s" Maria stared in shock, did Clark just swear? "Okay, thanks Lois, yeah, you be careful too. Bye" Clark turned to Maria and said in a voice shaking with anger. "Lex has been released. The charges have been dropped."

Maria stared at Clark in shock and then swayed where she stood, "Lex? No, Lex can't be," her eyes were huge and her voice trembled, "But I went to the police, he kidnapped me, I saw him there, I told them…my God, he'll kill us all." and she looked around as though she expected Lex to be lying in wait on the roof.

Clark pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her, tucking her face into his chest and murmuring in her ear soothingly. "Shhhh, shhh, Maria don't say that. I won't let anything happen to you. Oliver and the team won't let anything happen to your family. He's not that powerful. I can protect you from him. Let's go down and talk to Chloe, and see what we can find out." Maria nodded into his shirt. She really didn't want to move, she felt safe in his arms and outside them the world was sinister and filled with danger now that Lex was free.

Chloe was on the phone, typing on her keyboard and staring at the news on the TV monitor in the room when they came in. She looked up at Clark with worried eyes. "I can't believe this Clark," she said, "Apparently a man named Stan Turnpike confessed to the kidnapping and he said that he drugged Maria until she was high as a kite so there is no way she could have recognized anyone or understood what was going on. Now the report is that Turnpike committed suicide out of remorse." Chloe shook her head.

"What about 33.1?" asked Clark, his voice coming out harsh through his clenched jaws; surely something would stick to Lex.

"Well when the police raided the labs they found nothing there so obviously Lex has a mole in the police department, probably more than one." Chloe was talking to Clark but she kept glancing at Maria, who was pale and dazed, clinging to Clark like he was all that held her up.

"It looks like Lex is going to be cleared of all charges. Apparently the IRS is the only one giving him trouble now and that did tie up his funds Stateside but, you know Lex, can you say Swiss bank accounts?"

Maria felt like she couldn't breathe. The thought of Lex walking free was too terrible to contemplate. He would come after her, she knew, and not just for revenge. He knew she was close to Clark and whatever obsession he had about his secret, whatever he guessed, he knew she could give him information. Oh God, she thought, now I even know what can kill him. Her legs didn't feel like a part of her body anymore and chills swept through her making her shiver uncontrollably. She hated that, she wanted to be calm, Chloe looked calm. Actually Chloe was talking so fast she was hard to understand, so maybe calm was a little much, but at least she wasn't near passing out. Maria willed herself to stay upright and think, and listen. I will not faint, she told herself firmly. The room spun and she knew she was going down. She saw Chloe's alarmed face and felt Clark catch her but she was incapable of responding as all went dark.

"Clark!" Chloe called in alarm but he'd already caught Maria as she slumped against him. He lifted her in his arms and looked around for something soft to lay her on. "Lets take her to the employee lounge, there's a couch in there and it's fairly private." said Chloe looking at all the other employees staring in their direction. Clark nodded and followed her, his face softening as he looked down at Maria in concern. Her face was so pale and vulnerable looking. Clark swallowed hard, nothing and no one was going to hurt Maria if he could help it.

Chloe cleared some newspapers off the couch and Clark laid Maria down gently on it. He kneeled next to her and lightly stoked the back of his fingers across her cheek while quietly saying her name. Chloe dampened some paper towels and handed them to Clark and he patted her forehead with them. Maria slowly blinked her eyes open and looked at Clark. "I fainted." she said, disgust filling her voice. She felt like her body had betrayed her. She wanted to be brave and strong, a match for Clark, instead she fainted. How lame was that?

Chloe offered her some coffee and Maria accepted gladly. Clark helped her sit up and Chloe put the cup in her hand. "Don't spill it on me." teased Clark, and the image that comment brought to mind, of the day they met, caused Maria to smile tentatively at him. Chloe watched them a moment and then backed out of the room, gesturing towards her desk.

"I'll just go back to work and see if I can find anything else on Lex" she said, giving them what little privacy she could in a busy newsroom.

Lex looked out the window at the clouds drifting past beneath him. Living in Europe wouldn't be so bad, he thought, at least he could move around without the Feds watching his every step. First stop was going to be his Chateau in the Swiss Alps. He could set up a headquarters there as well as anywhere, check on his global projects, and still be kept informed about what went on in the States.

Lex smiled to himself. He wasn't giving up on revenge, far from it, he would simply bide his time until the perfect moment arrived. Let them relax, think he had forgotten them, and then his vengeance would be swift. He allowed himself the luxury of picturing what he would do to those who had hurt him, Dr. Desantis, Maria, his father, Chloe, Lois, even Clark. They would all pay.

He especially wanted to continue the talk he had begun with Maria. This time he would have her brought to him, there would be no idiot like Stan manhandling her. He would have her all to himself and he would finally know the truth about Clark.

He thought about how to hurt Clark. Something inside Lex hesitated at the thought of physically hurting him. They had once been almost as close as brothers. He remembered the way Clark had looked at him the last time they spoke, his eyes full of disappointment and sorrow. An unexpected twinge of grief haunted Lex and he reacted with rage. What did he care if Clark didn't approve of what he had done. It was none of his business anyway. Lex didn't need Clark's friendship. He didn't need anyone. Caring about others made you weak.

Chloe watched out of the corner of her eye as Clark supported Maria out of the employee lounge. She was holding his hand so tightly you could see the white on her knuckles but her color had come back to her face and she was laughing at something Clark said. Chloe smiled, and looked back at the computer as she remembered times he'd cheered her up the same way. He really had a gift, Chloe thought.

"Well, at least it looks like Lex has left the country." said Chloe as they joined her, "it could be the media attention was too much for him." and she grinned triumphantly at Clark.

"That doesn't mean we're safe." said Maria, "Lex can reach across the world and strike us at any time." she looked at Clark, "What do we do?"

"We can't close ourselves off someplace and live in fear all the time." said Clark, "We are just going to have to live our lives and be alert. Oliver and the team will keep him busy, Chloe will keep an eye on him and I'll stop him if he tries anything here. We'll be okay if we deal with this together as a um, as a team." He had almost said what his father always said, as a family. He thought about his friends. Well, they were kind of like a family, he thought, smiling to himself.

"Impulse, just get out now, the lab is due to explode in minutes!" yelled Oliver, AKA the Green Arrow into his com. unit.

"I'm coming but I don't want to leave this beauty behind." replied Bart, with longing in his voice. "She never hurt anyone; she doesn't deserve to blow up."

"Impulse, it's a car," said AC's exasperated voice, "just leave it."

"Nope," said Bart cheerfully, "I'm driving her out." and they heard the roar of an engine.

"Bart you don't have a clue how to drive, especially a stick shift." Oliver said as he watched the car lurch out of the building's garage. Oliver winced at the sound of grinding gears. The car shuddered violently and died.

"S, I killed it." said Bart, messing with the gear shift.

Oliver looked at his watch and screamed, "Bart, get out now!"

Bart felt the ground shake at the first explosion and leaped out of the car. Moving as fast as he could he was by Oliver's side before the next one came. He watched sadly as the car went up with the rest of the building.

Oliver looked thoughtfully at the burning wreckage of the car. "That does it; you will never drive my Jaguar."

Lex snapped his laptop shut with an oath. He couldn't believe they had hit him again. Since arriving in Europe he could swear the attacks on his facilities had increased. Every time he established a new 33.1 facility it went up in a blaze. This was totally unacceptable. These terrorists needed to be dealt with accordingly.

To be continued…

Well? What did you think? Please begs pitifully review?


	27. Chapter 27

_Thank you for the reviews! I'm so happy to see you're still here! Is everyone ready for more? Okay, here we go…_

Stars and Water

Chapter 27

Kate hurried to hug her daughter when she came in the door. "Maria, I'm so glad you're home! Are you okay? How are you feeling?" She asked, pulling back to look into Maria's face, concerned at the dark circles she saw under her eyes.

Maria clung to her mom. "It's just so unfair mom, how could that monster walk free like that." she was near tears but held them back. Maria was sick of crying.

"You're right sweetheart, it's horribly unfair. People like Lex twist our justice system and get whatever they want but never what they deserve." Kate could feel Maria shaking but she didn't know it wasn't from fear. "Maria, you're safe here. You just lay low awhile and we'll figure something out."

Maria pulled away from her mom and started pacing. "No. I know I would be safe but I don't want to put my life on hold. I want to go to college." She stopped pacing and looked her mother in the eye. "I finally know what I want to major in Mom. I'm changing my major to Law. I want to fight people like Lex. Maybe someday he'll be dealing with a judge who knows him all too well." Kate was surprised by the steel she heard in Maria's voice. Where was her shy, dreamy girl who avoided conflict at every turn?

She looked into Maria's eyes, worried she would see damage there from all the things her girl had been through lately. Instead she saw hope. There was anger and hurt of course but as she listened to Maria talk about what it would take to achieve her goals Kate saw the woman Maria would become. She was excited about her future and passionate about her new direction for the first time in far too long. She also noted the frequency of the words, "Clark said…" so she had a pretty good idea who had inspired the change. She sent a silent thank you to God for Clark Kent, and not for the first time.

"Maria, whatever you decide to do I'll support you, you know that." said Kate. "If you feel this strongly and want to start school again then we shouldn't let fear stop you." She smiled ruefully at her daughter, "you know there's a part of me that wants to keep you here and safe forever as my little girl." Kate pulled Maria back into a hug "I know you need to go, but promise to call as often as you can? I'm going to need to hear your voice if I'm going to get any sleep."

"Of course I'll call, Mom. I'm just going to Metropolis. I'm not going to war." she felt her mom take a breath to speak, "Yes, I know it's dangerous but I'll be with friends and we'll keep each other safe." she patted her mom's back. "Now I need to pack!"

"And shop." said Kate, smiling and blinking back the threatening tears.

Clark watched as the boy hugged Shelby. Even though he was in a wheelchair he got a lot of dog in his arms as Shelby leaned into him. The boy looked up at Clark with sparkling eyes. "Thanks Mr. Kent, I'll take good care of him, and you can come see him anytime."

"You're welcome Daniel, I know you will." Clark reached out to pat his dog on the head one last time. He had to swallow hard and remind himself that he would hardly see the dog once he started school anyway. It was for the best; Shelby was lonely whenever he was gone, even for an hour. Now, without his Mom there, Shelby would be alone for days with someone just feeding him and going out to work the farm. For a loving dog like this one it would be awful and Clark had to find a new home for him. His Mom had suggested Daniel and once he met the boy and saw him with Shelby he knew she was right. Shelby liked Daniel and was amazingly sensitive to the boys needs already. Clark knew it wouldn't be long before they were inseparable.

As Clark drove away he had to blink back tears. Leaving home had been hard but the house had become empty and didn't feel like home without his mom. Telling his mom he was going back to school had been easy, she was thrilled and he knew he could go to her just as quickly from Metropolis as from Smallville. Somehow giving up Shelby felt like the last connection had been cut.

Chloe packed up her things and carried them down to her car. She was going to miss this apartment and especially the easy availability of good coffee. She had to admit, the main appeal of this apartment was that it was in Smallville, and so was Clark. With Clark gone there was no reason for her to keep resisting Jimmy's suggestion of an apartment in Metropolis. He wouldn't be very happy when he found out her roommate would be Lois, but he'd have to deal.

Chloe looked at a case of pepper spray, a parting gift from her Uncle the General, and thought about Maria. Maria was going to be living in Lex's crosshairs, just like Chloe. She grabbed a few extra for her and resolved to teach Maria some self defense moves as soon as possible.

Lex smiled as he worked, he felt like the conductor of a great symphony, shifting the pieces and weaving them together into one perfect whole. If events went as planned it would all come together on his birthday. Really, what better present could you give to yourself than the total annihilation of your enemies? He was counting the days with gleeful anticipation.

Lois set up her desk at the Daily Planet. Granted it was on the ground floor, with a view of the closet. The desk was scarred and the chair creaked but the computer was state of the art and according to her press pass she was a reporter for the Planet.

The articles she had written lately on Lex were largely responsible for her new job and she thanked her unknown hero for the help she had received. The information had been amazingly accurate, the leads solid and she had run with it right to this desk at one of the most prestigious newspapers in the country.

Lois stroked her desk possessively, ahhhh, to have the power of a real newspaper behind her when she conducted interviews. The thing that capped it all for her was Chloe. Chloe was thrilled for her and hadn't shown an ounce of jealousy. Of course she had taken the credit for pushing Lois into journalism in the first place, and she also bragged that she was Lois first editor. Working together was going to be such a blast, thought Lois, and she twirled her chair until she was dizzy.

Maria struggled with her trunk full of clothes. The wheels would have been a lot more help if she hadn't been dealing with stairs, she thought, you would think the dorm would have an elevator. Resting against the wall she dropped her trunk, closed her eyes and breathed deeply, her arm muscles still shaking from the strain. One more flight of steps and three boxes of books left, she groaned and opened her eyes at the sound of a familiar voice. "Clark!" she cheered and all her exhaustion was gone as she leapt into his arms.

Clark was delighted at her reaction. Part of him was still in shock that he had a girlfriend. "Hey Maria," he laughed as he caught her mid leap, "uh, it's good to see you too." and he hugged her back. "Do you need some help with your stuff? I've already got mine put away and I thought I'd come see if you needed a hand."

Maria wrestled with her pride and lost. "Thank god, yes! Please help me. I think this thing weighs more than I do." and she slid back down his body, causing all kinds of distracting thoughts to roam through Clark's mind, and gestured towards her overstuffed trunk.

Clark hefted it easily with one hand, "Nope, you weigh more." he said without thinking, and then at her expression he tried to back pedal. "Not that you weigh a lot, I mean you aren't very heavy and um, you look good. Well, great actually," and he continued to fumble around until Maria took pity on him.

"It's okay Clark." and she laughed at the look of relief on his face. "You can make it up to me by carrying my books up to my room and then taking me out to eat." She gave him a kiss on his cheek and whispered, "Thank you for coming to help me."

Clark had all of her things in her room in practically no time, literally, and they headed off on foot to a place Clark knew that served great Thai food. As they walked Maria noticed that Clark s eyes got an intense look occasionally and he seemed to be scanning their surrounding, then he would relax for a while. He continued to laugh and talk with her as though nothing was wrong and she realized he didn't want her to notice that he was watching for danger. He wrapped his arm protectively around her shoulders and she smiled up at him and leaned close. Here in his arms she was safe from anything, she thought.

At the restaurant, after Clark helped Maria finish her shrimp, he pulled a small box out of his pocket and placed it on the table in front of her. Maria stared at it in surprise and looked at Clark's blushing face. "What's this? It isn't my birthday or anything." and she picked up the box and pulled the ribbon to untie the bow.

"It's just something I want you to have." said Clark softly, looking away a moment and then looking back to lock eyes with her. "It's to keep you safe but I also wanted it to be beautiful."

Maria opened the box and pulled out a delicate heart shaped locket. Flipping it over she read:

_To Maria, _

_I'll always be there for you. _

_Love, Clark _

Maria looked up at Clark, "It's beautiful. I love it." she said, "Help me put it on?" and she held her hair out of the way so he could fasten the clasp.

"It has a tracking device inside so that no matter what happens I can find you." said Clark solemnly. "I hope that's okay?"

Maria turned her head and looked up, startled. "Yes, I guess its okay." she said doubtfully, then she thought about it and stroking the locket she said, "Thank you Clark, I wont ever take it off."

Clark nodded, "I was hoping you'd say that Maria." and he leaned down and planted a kiss on her cheek. "I don't ever want to loose you."

To be continued…

_I would like to just say for the record that I wrote this story and posted it on a Smallville website, under the same title. I started it in July 2007. It's complete but I am revising it as I go along because I'm finding all kinds of little (and big) errors. Um, also in its original form its NC 17 and I didn't want to post that here. Some of the things in this chapter may seem familiar to people who have watched Smallville lately but that's just coincidence, unless the writers read my story and got some ideas…I wish!! Anyhow, please read and review! It makes me so happy when I see new comments! Thanks for reading!!!_


	28. Chapter 28

_Reviews!!! Yay!Happy dancing authoress Thank you muchly!!_

_Just for that, you wonderful loyal readers, here's more…_

Stars and Water

Chapter 28

They were quiet on the way back to the dorm, each dwelling in their own thoughts. Maria was once again tucked up against Clark with his arm around her shoulders. She felt safe in his arms but the gift of the tracking device had made her danger seem even more real. Whether Clark meant it that way or not, it was an admission that Lex could kidnap her. Not when she was with Clark of course but he wasn't in all of her classes and couldn't be with her every minute.

She touched the locket again; it was a promise that if Lex did take her Clark would come. She knew Lex wouldn't just have her killed because, as Clark had told her, Lex believed knowledge was power and she knew things he wanted to know about Clark. Maria thought about what Lex would do with that knowledge and shivered in spite of the warm air. Clark looked down at her in concern, rubbing her shoulders a little to warm her up.

"Maria, are you okay?" he asked. Maybe he shouldn't have given her the locket, he thought, but he didn't want a repeat of last time where Maria needed him and he didn't know where to find her. He'd thought about giving it to her and not telling her about the tracking device but that had seemed wrong somehow. Maybe it was from his experiences with Lex but he didn't feel people should be tracked like that without their permission. It seemed dehumanizing somehow, even if it was done out of love.

"I'm okay," she thought about lying to Clark, saying that she was cold, but she wanted to always be honest with him. "I just had a nasty thought about Lex, but I don't want to waste any more time dwelling on him." She changed the subject. "So, have you met your roommate yet?"

Clark understood and followed her lead, "He's not here yet." he said, "My luck he'll be a science fiction nut with an alien fetish and I'll float in my sleep in front of him or something."

Maria heard the worry in his voice. "You don't really float in your sleep do you?" she giggled, "I guess you could tell him you practice yoga and you have achieved levitation, and then of course you'll have everyone on campus meditating."

Clark smiled, "I have floated in my sleep before but it's been a long time. I'm not very worried I will again. Its just weird thinking of living with a stranger, and I've never shared a room with anyone before. I'm kind of looking forward to it, and kind of dreading it. Know what I mean?"

Maria heard loud music coming from her room as they approached the door. "I know exactly what you mean." she said with a grimace as she opened the door and the noise burst out at them.

A tall young woman with wild black hair and wearing pink footed pajamas threw her arms around Maria. "You must be my roommate! I'm Naomi. Is this your boyfriend? What's his name?" said Naomi, eyeing Clark with appreciation.

Maria felt breathless, Naomi talked so fast, and Maria had hoped to be alone with Clark. She looked at him apologetically and he grinned and shrugged. He hadn't met his roommate yet but he doubted he could be any odder than Naomi.

Oh well, thought Maria, at least she's friendly. "Yes I'm Maria and this is my boyfriend Clark." she said and was a little taken aback when Naomi threw her arms around him too. Clark gave her a very careful hug and looked at Maria as if in apology. She just raised her eyebrows at him and then grinned when he blushed.

They all hung out and talked for a while, or at least listened to Naomi talk for a while and eventually after Maria's fifth jaw popping yawn, Clark excused himself to go back to his dorm. Maria offered to come along but Clark insisted she go to bed and he would come see her in the morning.

She wanted to argue but wound up yawning instead and admitted reluctantly he was right. She walked with him out to the hall and they embraced tenderly. When he kissed her she felt she never wanted to let go, but he pulled away eventually when someone came up the steps. Cupping her cheek in his hand and laughing at her when she yawned again he wished her a good night.

When she got back to her room the lights were off and Naomi was in bed but the music was still playing. It was softer music and she found she liked it although she had never heard the band. She wondered if she would be able to fall asleep with the noise and was out before she finished her thought.

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Lex put the phone down and got up to pace the room. Lately he had been so obsessed with his quest for revenge that he had ceased to sleep, hardly ate and neglected his business dealings. Now that the day approached he found that he could hardly contain himself. There was only one more day until his birthday, he told himself, one more day until his wrath would be felt by those who opposed him. He was satisfied that it was all falling into place. He contemplated the pain he would inflict on those who had once been his friends and any touch of guilt was brutally put down. They had betrayed him and they would pay. No one messes with Lex Luthor, he thought.

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The sky brightened just before the sun rose above the skyline of Metropolis, its pale grey light creeping through the blinds and into the silent dorm room. The campus of Met U was quiet and the dew shimmered untouched on the grass of the commons. Maria woke up to a quiet knock on her door. She looked over at her roommate's bed and saw a tumbled heap still under the blankets and black hair trailing off the side of the bed. Maria groaned and dragged herself up as she heard the knock again. She pulled the door open and stood blinking at Chloe.

"That's it? No who's there, no look out the peep hole? You just fling the door open as though Lex Luthor was never born? Clearly I was right to worry. Here, I brought you coffee." said Chloe pushing a large paper cup into her hands. "The cafeteria coffee isn't worthy of the name." she looked at Maria expectantly, "Well, drink it and go get dressed, it's black just like you like it. We need to talk before you head to class. Oh, and wear sweats or something."

Maria opened her door wider and let Chloe in. What on earth was she doing here at this hour? Why did they need to talk? She stumbled into the bathroom and pulled herself together, then came out and slipped into her bright blue sweats and a white T shirt. After beating her hair into submission with a brush and pulling it firmly into a ponytail she turned to Chloe, "Okay, I'm ready. Now what?" she whispered, glancing in her roommate's direction. There had been a grumble from under the covers and then the blankets had shifted up to cover her completely.

"Let's go outside to the commons, there's more room and no one is out there yet," said Chloe. Maria followed along, meekly sipping her coffee and growing more curious by the minute as the caffeine took effect. She liked Chloe and respected her, so whatever she was up to Maria would do her best to keep up.

An hour later Maria was still trying to keep up, "I can't do this Chloe, I can't fight like this. It makes me cringe to think of gouging someone's eyes out or pushing their nose back into their brain with the heel of my hand." Maria shuddered, honestly appalled at the self defense moves Chloe was trying to teach her.

"Maria if someone is trying to kill you, you need to be ready to defend yourself any way you can." said Chloe, "Okay, to be honest I don't feel comfortable with any of those moves either but I thought you should know them just in case. I'll tell you what, we will just work on breaking holds and getting away, okay?" she gave Maria an encouraging smile.

They worked for a while longer and Maria felt she could get out of almost any hold. She had to admit Chloe had given her more confidence and a lot of practical advice.

"Okay! By George I think she's got it!" exclaimed Chloe as Maria flipped her over her back when Chloe grabbed her from behind. "Now I can go to work and stop worrying about you. Well, not as much anyway. Oh, one last thing, here…a present from one Luthor target to another." and she handed Maria the pepper spray.

"Thank you Chloe, I really appreciate your help." said Maria a little confused. They weren't close friends and although Maria liked Chloe and could tell Chloe liked her she still couldn't imagine why Chloe would be so concerned for her.

Chloe could tell she was confused. "Maria, I'll admit it's not just you I worry about. Clark cares for you a lot and he would be devastated if something happened to you. You hold his heart and by knowing his secret you hold his life and future too. Do you understand how important that is?"

Maria nodded, "I think so. I'm starting to understand, I would never tell anyone his secret Chloe. I would die first."

Chloe looked hard at her and then nodded. "So would I. I really believe Clark has a destiny beyond any of us and I think the world needs him, now more than ever." then Chloe's expression softened, "but I also want my best friend to be happy and for that he needs you, so be careful. Okay?"

Maria surprised Chloe with a hug. "Okay Chloe, you be careful too, Clark needs all his friends. Thank you for teaching me the self defense moves. I hope I never need them."

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Lex ticked the converging threads of his plot off on his fingers, muttering to himself as he examined each for weaknesses and seeing none. Pacing quickly in a small circuit of the room he completely ignored the meal laid out for him as he thought of each target one by one.

He had the surveillance in place on his father, watching for the opportune time for the sniper to strike. Lex wanted it to be when he was with Martha Kent. He couldn't quite bring himself to have her killed but he knew seeing Lionel die would hurt her and he wanted to cause her pain for her betrayal. Somehow picturing her reaction didn't bring him the satisfaction he hoped for but he ignored his conflicted feelings and focused on his father. Lex went cold as he remembered all the times his father hurt him. Yes, he could kill this man with no remorse, he thought.

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Clark woke up at the first sign of light coming in through his window. He lay in the strange bed and listened to the sounds of the city waking up. Somewhere nearby a garbage truck was doing its rounds and Clark thought it sounded like some dinosaur was munching on the trash cans. Traffic was very light so you could still hear the occasional bird song. The room was silent, Clark's roommate had not arrived yet so he still had the space to himself. He stretched and sighed, it felt strange not to have chores to do. Mornings were usually busy on the farm and he missed his routine, then he remembered Maria and smiled. He was really looking forward to being with her every day.

He wanted to go see Maria now but he knew it was early; she didn't have any classes until ten o'clock today so waking her up at six thirty probably wouldn't go over well. He took a leisurely shower and looked over his text books and then headed to her room at eight o'clock, just to see if she was up.

Maria was up and wide awake when he came to her door. He could hear her walking around her room and knew it was Maria's step. She was being quiet so he assumed her roommate was asleep.

Clark knocked softly and heard a quiet, "Who's there?" Good, he was glad she was being cautious.

He answered and the door popped open and then Maria slipped out. "Clark! I'm so happy to see you!" she said and she kissed him as though she hadn't just seen him the night before. Clark was happy to kiss her back with equal enthusiasm.

Maria felt her knees begin to buckle as she melted into his kiss. "As much as I'd like to do this all morning, I feel dizzy when I don't breathe." she said, tucking her head against his chest for a moment and hanging on until her head stopped spinning. Oh, but she wished breathing wasn't necessary. "Let's get breakfast, I'm starving."

Later in the Cafeteria Clark watched in wonder as Maria filled her plate.

Maria wasn't kidding Clark thought, of course it was less than half the food he took but it was still a lot. "Wow, you are hungry." he said, as she tucked a piece of toast onto the growing pile of ham, eggs, hash browns, and fruit she already had loaded on her plate.

"You try practicing Martial Arts at dawn with our friend Chloe and see how hungry you are." She answered, grinning at his puzzled expression. "That was my reaction too but it was really helpful and sweet of her. She's a good friend, even if she did make me work hard before breakfast."

They found a table and ate in silence for a moment. Maria looked up to see Clark pushing his eggs around doubtfully on his plate. "What's wrong Clark?" she asked, watching him tasting them cautiously, she looked down at her own in alarm.

"They don't taste like eggs." He said, "They look right but they taste weird."

Maria laughed, "That's because they didn't come straight from the hen house. Welcome to dorm food Clark, they might even be powdered." Clark made a face, "Come on," she said, "It's not any worse than a school lunch."

"I never ate the school lunch," he replied, "Mom always packed something for me." He ate another bite. "Well, if you don't think of them as eggs they aren't bad." He said as he finished his breakfast.

"Boy, are you spoiled. Good thing you know how to cook, your wife might not be up to your standards." She grinned.

"I'm not that picky, I like your cooking." He said, and watched to see how she took it.

Clark's smile widened at her surprised expression, "Oh yeah. Thanks a lot." she said, and Clark dodged the piece of crust she flipped in his direction.

To be continued…


	29. Chapter 29

Stars and Water

Chapter 29

Lex stood and looked out the window without really seeing; his focus was on Chloe and Lois and the plan that was in place for the Daily Planet. It would punish Chloe and that horrible woman Lois, as well as destroying the Planet itself. Lex's face was a mask of grim determination as he thought of how much he once admired Chloe. Not that long ago they had worked together against his father. He had trusted her and that made her even more to blame in his eyes. Lois, on the other hand, had always been an enemy and destroying enemies was what a man did to survive. He had a right to defend himself, he thought, his lips turning up slightly. The sun reflected off the glass and his thoughts were filled with devouring flames.

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Chloe was typing madly and scanning her notes while looking at the pictures Jimmy had provided. She was in the zone and words were buzzing in her head faster than she could type. The construction crew that had been working on the building was making a lot of noise and it was distracting most people but not Chloe. The ceiling could fall in and she'd keep writing.

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Lois walked in past the construction crew and stifled the urge to make a rude gesture when one of them commented on her figure, settling for a glare instead. She was dressed professionally in a steel blue, pinstriped suit for crying out loud, she didn't want to be treated as a sex object. Lois didn't notice that one of the men kept apart from the others and watched her with an alert, predatory look. When he called someone on his cell phone she had already gone to her desk and started scrolling on her computer, sorting her Email, junk, junk, junk, ugh, how she wished she could just delete the whole thing but of course then she would miss the one important lead buried in all the garbage.

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Maria s mouth dropped open in amazement as she listened to Clark talk about his classes, "How can you possibly take that many, and what do you mean you've already read the textbooks?" They were meeting for a quick lunch between classes. Maria was sitting cross-legged on the ground eating a bagel and Clark was leaning against a tree munching on an apple with his long legs stretched out in front of him. She smiled to herself as she noticed the looks he was getting from the girls who walked by and how blissfully unaware he was of the attention.

Clark looked at her with a smile playing around the corners of his mouth, "Well, I had a few minutes this morning before I came to see you so I took the time to read them. I think the classes will be interesting."

Maria realized her mouth was still gaping and she shut it and swallowed hard. Why did anything about Clark surprise her anymore, she thought. He was telling her about his schedule and how he would work all his classes in and she listened in awe as he discussed what he had read and obviously understood from his books. Clark was excited and his eyes were sparkling and when he began to talk about his journalism class he broke into a full blown dazzling smile. Maria felt her heart flip, we are in public, she reminded herself, smiling back.

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Martha picked up the call, "Lionel! Of course I'll meet you for lunch tomorrow. Sounds wonderful, a walk is just what I need. I've been cooped up in meetings all week and I could really use a break from this filtered, conditioned air." She laughed at his response. "Twelve thirty will be fine, see you then." She hung up with a smile, even though she didn't completely trust Lionel he was still a good friend and she enjoyed her time with him. He had protected Clark's secret for years and that won a lot of points with her.

She wondered how Clark was doing in school and resisted the urge to call him. He would probably call her after he got the care package she had sent anyway. She knew she needed to let him be on his own but it was so hard, after protecting him for years, to just let go. She grabbed another pile of papers on her desk and pulled them close, back to work, she thought, I'm sure Clark is fine.

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Lex's hands were trembling as he poured himself a drink. The call had confirmed that all was set for the Planet and on schedule. With that settled he turned his mind to Dr. Desantis. The team in Star City had been assembled and was primed to move on their Target at Queen Industries. It would look like an attack on the lab, linked to the Green Arrow and his fellow terrorists. He really wished he could be there in person to witness the death of Dr. Desantis but one couldn't have everything. He had placed two of his most trusted employees in charge and knew it would be handled professionally.

Lex would have a personal hand in his plan for Maria and his way to avenge himself on Clark would be tied into that plan. He swallowed his drink in one gulp and poured himself another. A surge of excitement shot through him that was almost sexual in it's intensity, soon he would know the truth about that liar Clark Kent. Lex looked at his watch and headed for his personal jet, time to head to Metropolis. Tomorrow couldn't come fast enough. He was looking forward to an eventful birthday.

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Her soft hand was warm in his and Clark felt his heart hum with contentment. He'd been able to spend hours with Maria today, between classes, during meals, and now just walking together in silence. This kind of relationship was a new experience for him and he reveled in it. The sun had gone down and as darkness closed in the lights along the path were coming on one by one as they walked to his dorm. Loud music drifted out of the windows and bounced off the brick walls, pop rock warring with rap trying to drown out country, all forming a cacophony of celebration. The music swept past the silent couple and was ignored as Clark looked at Maria in wonder. Her eyes were shining up at him with her soul bare to see, she loved him and he felt a lump in his throat at how open she was about it. There were no games with Maria, no trying to figure out what she wanted or worry about what she thought. She demanded nothing and it made him want to give her everything.

When they got to his dorm room they were delighted to find that his roommate still hadn't shown up. They stepped inside and Clark pulled Maria into a kiss that started out sweetly tender and shifted into overwhelmingly sensual as his warm hands roamed gently over her body. She gasped as her body reacted with a trembling shiver and a surge of heat. Feeling her tremble Clark cupped her face softly in his hands and barely touched her lips in another kiss. Then he pulled her closer and tucked his face into her neck, "I love you so much Maria" he whispered, his voice shaking with emotion.

Clark began kissing Maria's neck and she shivered again. She was feeling happy and mischievous so she decided to find out if Clark Kent was ticklish and if so where. She started unbuttoning his shirt but as she did she ever so lightly ran her fingertips over his ribs and up. Clark jumped a bit and she smiled, this was going to be interesting. She ran her hands down his arms, smoothing the muscles as she went. Then she suddenly darted in and tickled his ribs again. Clark jumped and laughed; now he knew what she was up to. If she wanted to tickle him she was going to have to catch him first.

What followed was like playing with the wind. Clark would suddenly appear and kiss her and then before she could get him he was gone in a breeze. Then she felt his hands graze her ribs and she laughed. "Unfair Kent, I can't even see you to get you back!" she cried.

Suddenly he appeared before her and his merry eyes were dark with passion, "Ah, but I can see you." he said, letting his eyes rove over her with appreciation, "and you're beautiful." and this time he didn't disappear but came to her and held her close.

"I should really get back." Maria said as they stretched out next to each other across Clark's bed.

"Yeah, it's getting late." said Clark, shifting so that her head was pillowed on his shoulder and wrapping her carefully in his arms to keep her from falling off the edge of the narrow bed. Turning his head he kissed her in a slow lingering kiss and Maria had to use all her self control to keep from pushing him for more. Taking deep breaths she allowed herself to relax into him and enjoy feeling loved and held. His body felt blissfully warm next to hers and his plaid shirt was soft against her cheek. Maria closed her eyes for a moment, rubbing her face against his shirt and sighing as he gently stroked her back.

Clark listened to Maria's breathing even out and felt her body become loose and heavy as she drifted to sleep in his arms. He decided to let her sleep for a little bit before taking her home, she was so tired and besides it was awfully nice to have her in his arms.

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Maria woke up slowly, she was so warm and comfortable it was hard for her to think about moving. Clark had shifted on the small mattress and a good deal of him was now sprawled across her body. His breath was warming her neck and his soft hair brushing her cheek smelled of shampoo.

Maria saw the golden light of morning streaming in the window and was amazed Clark wasn't awake already. What time was it? Were they late for class? Maria struggled a little trying to turn to see the clock but couldn't lift herself enough to see where it sat on top of his desk. It was a shame to wake him, he looked so peaceful. Maria gently stroked his back with her free arm; the other was pinned between their bodies, and whispered his name. "Clark, Clark, sweetheart, wake up." She murmured. He stirred a little and she felt him sigh. "Come on honey, wake up, rise and shine."

"Mmm Maria?" he mumbled and lifted his head a little to look at the clock. "It's only seven o'clock." his head dropped back down, "We can still sleep." And he nuzzled her neck, "or not." He whispered suggestively in her ear. Maria felt her body ignite as his breath tickled her neck below her ear and his lips followed in a trail of feather light kisses. Was he suggesting what she thought he was?

Suddenly Clark lunged upright and stood with his head cocked to one side, listening. Looking at Maria with alarm he hissed, "I think my roommate's here!" and he blurred into a super speed room clean up that had Maria in a whirlwind of flying blankets and pillows. By the time the door opened the bed was made and Maria and Clark were both sitting demurely in chairs.

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"What do you mean you don't know where she is?" Lex was growling into the phone and his hands were shaking with fury as he listened to the idiot stammer on the other end. It was impossible to get good help these days.

"I don't know Sir she hasn't come back to the room. I'm sorry; I really don't know where she went." Naomi's voice was shaking as she pleaded with Lex. "Please, I didn't do anything wrong! I can't help that she's gone! No I don't think she suspects. How could she?" Naomi was searching her mind, could Maria suspect? She was pretty sure she had carried off the whole goofy roommate shtick. Naomi wondered about Maria and what she had done to make Lex so ruthlessly angry. "Yes Sir, I understand. I'll let you know when she comes back." Naomi heard Maria greet someone in the hall and had to lean against her desk as the relief washed through her. "Never mind I hear her now. Of course I have the package ready. I have to go". and she closed her cell phone with a snap.

Naomi pounced on Maria the moment she entered the room. "My God Maria where have you been? I've been so worried about you". Maria was surprised at the intensity in Naomi's voice, she sounded shaken and Maria felt a stab of guilt as Naomi continued, "We girls are supposed to stick together against the big, bad world out there but we can't if you don't at least tell me when you aren't coming home, that way I will know when to call the police and when to have a friend over. You know?"

Maria began to apologize but before she finished Naomi waved it off. "Don't worry about it roomie." She said as she opened a box sitting on the desk. "Hey, I got some jelly donuts from a bakery down the street. You want one?" she held out the box enticingly under Maria's nose. The donuts smelled fantastic and Maria's stomach let her know she hadn't eaten yet. Naomi seemed to really want to share and Maria thought she was trying awfully hard to make friends. Well, maybe she was lonely. Maria smiled and took one and found it odd that she couldn't catch Naomi's eyes when she thanked her.

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Clark was heading to class after meeting his roommate, a talkative young man named Zack. He seemed like a nice enough guy and Clark thought they would get along okay as long as Zack didn't collect rocks or something. Clark had an uneasy feeling about today, he wasn't sure why but it felt like a storm was brewing even though the sky was a cold, clear, blue. He decided to call his Mom on his cell as he walked to class.

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"Clark! Sweetie it's so good to hear your voice." Martha said happily, then her tone shifted to concern, "Is everything okay?" She was at her desk plowing through another pile of papers and looking at the clock occasionally, almost ten o'clock, far too early for lunch. "Sweetheart I'm meeting Lionel for lunch, why don't you come join us; it's the first free moment I've had in days and likely to be the last for at least three weeks. After lunch you and I can go for a walk and you can tell me all about school while I show you a bit of Washington DC. Oh good, I'm glad you have time. I can't wait to see you." Martha hung up the phone and smiled. Nice to have a son who can cross the country in minutes, she thought. Then she looked at the mound of paperwork and her smile fell. Better start shoveling, she thought, sometimes working as a Senator reminded her of cleaning out the stalls on the farm.

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Lex listened as his man in Washington reported. Everything was on schedule. "Make sure you don't miss your opportunity," he said. "Take him down on the way to the restaurant, outside and in the open. Report in when you've completed your objective." A shiver of excitement ran down Lex's spine, after today he would truly be out from under his father's control. Happy Birthday to me, he thought.

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Clark found it difficult to concentrate in class. His feeling of foreboding just wouldn't lift and he found himself worrying about Maria. He tried text messaging her but she didn't respond. Well, she was in the middle of class so maybe she couldn't check her phone. Clark decided to call her later.

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Maria ate the jelly donut as she decided on what to wear for class. I need a shower, she thought, and she started towards the bathroom. Suddenly her legs went limp and she dropped to the floor unable to stop herself. It was like her body belonged to someone else and she watched in a haze as Naomi approached her. Naomi gently straightened her limbs and laid her out in a comfortable position on the ground. "I meant to catch you but you fell faster than I expected" she said soothingly. Maria struggled to speak but couldn't force out a sound. She watched Naomi talking to someone on the phone but she couldn't understand what was being said. The room whirled away from her and then all went dark.

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Lois had gotten a red hot lead in the midst of all that spam and she just had to share this one with Chloe. It was about another one of Lex's experiments and gave a website to go to for more information. She and Chloe had put their heads together all morning doing research, and were still madly writing and making phone calls as others at The Planet wandered out to lunch. The construction crew left as well and the building was silent except for the dual sounds of tapping computer keys. Lois sniffed and raised her head to look around the empty room, "Do you smell smoke?" she asked Chloe.

To be continued…

_Please review!! Was it confusing? I wanted it to jump around and be kind of like how a movie flashes from person to person but I wasn't sure if it would work. Did the-----help or distract you? Do you want to know what happens next? Let me know what you think!!!_


	30. Chapter 30

Thanks for the encouraging words. I hope you like this part!

Stars and Water

Chapter 30

Kate found herself missing Bart as she chased Nick around the house. Nick had been moping ever since Oliver and his friends had left for Europe so she'd decided to cheer him up with a game. His response had been an enthusiastic "Okay Mommy, let's run!" and they had.

"Tag, you're it!" She called triumphantly. "Now it's time for lunch, we can't play in Mommy's lab all day. We need to eat lunch and then it's back to preschool for you and back to work for me. I can't run another step."

Suddenly an armed group of men crashed through the doors and into her lab. "Run!" she screamed at Nick and grabbing his hand found she had reserves of speed she had never touched before. She ducked as she heard gunfire and the sound of shattering glass. A hand grabbed her and yanked her behind a shelf full of books as more gunfire blasted the area where she had been.

"I've got her Matt!" yelled the man who still held her firmly by the arm as she struggled to get away.

"Get her out of here Scott, I'll try and cover you." came the reply.

Then she heard another voice protesting. "What the hell are you doing Matt? Which side are you on anyway?"

"The right one." answered Matt, and Kate heard another burst of gunfire. Scott pulled her arm hard in the direction of the exit and she found herself running fast to keep up. Then he dropped her wrist and picked up Nick so they could move faster and she allowed him to carry her son.

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Clark slowed down enough to be seen and caught up with his Mom and Lionel as they stepped outside. After greeting his Mom with a warm hug and Lionel with a cautious handshake he walked together with them down the sidewalk. His feeling of uneasiness had been increasing all day and it hadn't helped that Maria didn't return his calls. When he'd stopped by her dorm her roommate had said she was at class and then told him about a study group Maria had mentioned meeting for lunch. Clark thought it was odd Maria hadn't told him about it but then they hadn't spent a lot of time talking last night.

A glint of sunlight on metal caught Clark's eye and the flash was followed by the all too familiar sound of a high powered rifle being fired. Clark searched for the bullet and found it as it sped towards Lionel. Using his heat vision he melted the bullet, and then he sped to where the sniper was located. Never allowing himself to be seen he knocked the man unconscious, and then picking him up as though his two hundred fifty pounds was nothing, Clark delivered him to Lionel.

"This creep nearly put a bullet in your head." He told Lionel. "I'm sure you'd like to see that it doesn't happen again." Maybe this was what he had felt was coming, Clark thought. He discarded that thought when his feeling of something horrible about to happen loomed over him more than ever. "Mom, I have to go. I'm worried about Maria." Clark apologized and gave his Mom a tight embrace before he disappeared. Maybe it was time to use that tracking device, he thought, and he headed to Chloe at the Daily Planet. If anyone could find Maria it would be Chloe.

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After Clark had left the dorm that morning Naomi tried to tell herself that Lex wouldn't hurt Maria. It wasn't a very convincing lie. The events of the morning wouldn't stop playing in her head as she remembered the last time she saw Maria.

Naomi had met the ambulance and had guided the paramedics into her room, talking nervously all the while. Two of the white jacketed men had strapped Maria to the gurney while a third had handed Naomi an envelope. She had held it tight in her shaking hands while watching wide eyed as they wheeled Maria away. What did Lex want with her anyway, Naomi wondered, as she opened the envelope and fingered the cash inside. The sick feeling in her stomach told her that she had done an evil thing.

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Lex watched as Maria was transferred from the ambulance to his private jet. She hadn't begun to wake yet but she would soon. By then they would be miles away over the Atlantic, soaring at 30,000 feet, far beyond anyone's aid. Lex wanted her wide awake for what he had in store for her there.

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Chloe sniffed the air and her eyes went wide in alarm. "Yes Lois, I do smell smoke, and I don't think it's one of the employees sneaking a cig in the bathroom again. They stood up and looked around for the fire in a room that was becoming smokier by the minute.

Chloe gasped and grabbed Lois, turning her to look at what she saw. Smoke had begun rolling in under the doors and there were flames creeping up one of the walls. She and Lois dashed for the door farthest from the flames but it wouldn't open.

"It can't be locked. It must just be stuck." And Lois tried kicking the door while Chloe moved to another one. When none of the doors would open panic began to build in Chloe. She remembered the construction worker who stayed behind and worked on the doors as she and Lois ignored him. He must have done something to keep them shut. They were trapped and it didn't seem like an accident. It must be Lex, she thought.

"Clark!" she screamed without thinking. Lois looked at her in disgust.

"What on earth is the farm boy going to do about this, assuming he could even hear you?" she asked as she tried dialing 911 on her cell phone, "Great, no service." A crash sounded behind them and they turned in time to see a section of the wall collapsing and flames shooting up to the ceiling in a wave of heat. They grabbed each other and held on, crouching behind a desk, prepared to die together as the flames raced towards them.

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Kate was gasping for breath and holding her side as she ran. The man, Scott, was leading her through the lab and out an emergency exit as though he knew the building better than she did. As they crashed into the bar on the door she looked back and saw someone entering the hall, he was holding his arm and staggering and she noted there was no gun in his hand. Scott glanced back when she gasped, "Matt!" he exclaimed and it was clear to her he was torn with a desire to help him but when he looked down at Nick his jaw clenched and he turned his back and pushed the door open.

Once outside Kate made a decision and reached for her son. "You can't leave your friend behind." She said, nodding her head in Matt's direction. "I'll take Nick and keep running. Where are we going?"

Scott looked at her, surprised, and passed the terrified boy over to his Mother, where he clung tight with his face buried in her shoulder. "There's a white Toyota Corolla, around the side of the building." He studied her for a moment and then reached in his pocket and handed her the keys. "Start the car and wait if you can. If you see anyone besides us coming, floor it." Scott ran back into the building, pulling the gun from beneath his jacket as he went.

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Maria's head hurt. It felt as though a hot knife had been inserted behind her eyes and left there. She could feel she was on a soft chair; her arms were on an armrest, her head on a pillow. She wondered if Naomi had called the paramedics. Maybe she was in the hospital. Maria cautiously opened her eyes and Lex's face filled her vision causing her to jerk away with a gasp of horror, Lex laughed. "Hello beautiful, how nice of you to join me." he said pleasantly, as though she were a guest.

"Let me go Lex, please." She pleaded, even though she knew it would do no good.

"Oh I will let you go, but not until you've told me everything I want to know about Clark Kent." he smiled an icy cold smile that came nowhere near touching his eyes.

"Then I guess I'll be staying a long time because I won't tell you anything." Maria answered, furious that her voice would choose that moment to tremble.

Lex's smile grew into a rapacious grin. "Sweetheart you are going to tell me everything I ask. As a matter of fact you will rush to spill it all once I give you this." And Lex pulled a syringe out of his pocket.

"Wha…What is that?" stammered Maria, barely able to get the words out past the terror that was filling her. She frantically looked around for an escape only to realize they were in Lex's private jet. Now she understood why she wasn't tied up, even if she ran there was nowhere to go. She looked out the window at the sunlight reflecting off the clouds. It looked like heaven up here, and then she looked into Lex's insane eyes and saw hell.

To be continued…

_Reviews????? Please??????????? Pretty please with sugar on top???? Pretty please with an update on top???????????? _


	31. Chapter 31

Stars and Water

Chapter 31

Clark came out of super speed in an alley near the Daily Planet, walked around the corner and froze, staring at a horrific sight. The iconic building was engulfed in flames, licking up the walls, glowing in the windows. A huge pillar of sooty black smoke climbed into the sky and spread across Metropolis.

Fire trucks were pulling up to the building as he stared and the firemen moved swiftly to set up hoses and move bystanders away from the area. The wall of heat radiating off the building had already managed to clear out most of the onlookers but the reporters who usually worked inside were covering the fire from a very personal viewpoint and had no intention of leaving.

Clark looked for Lois and Chloe among the crowd, expecting them to be front and center. When he couldn't find them his stomach dropped and he felt like he couldn't breathe. Then Clark heard Chloe scream and he was filled with fear for his friend. Oh God, she was inside. He looked at the building, and then he used his x-ray vision and really looked at the building and found them.

Thoughts about how he could save them flew through his head. Walking in past the firemen and through the heat and flames would be dangerous. He might as well carry a huge sign that read "Hey, I'm an alien". Of course that was exactly what he would do if there was no other way. He certainly wouldn't let his friends die to protect his secret. He had no time to think things through; he just had to go for it and hope for the best. Clark took a deep breath.

Chloe held Lois close and ducked her face into her chest to protect it from the heat. "I love you Lois." She said in a raspy voice.

Lois held Chloe and stroked her back with a shaking hand. "I love you too, little cuz." The heat grew in intensity and it was nearly impossible to breathe.

Suddenly a gust of cold air hit their faces and the fire went out. Chloe and Lois looked around in wonder. The room had become an ice palace complete with dripping icicles. Chloe grinned, she didn't know exactly what happened but she knew it was Clark. It was always Clark. Oh how she wished she could tell Lois, just to see the look of disbelief on her face as she found out what Clark Kent could really do. Ah well, I'll have to settle for the look she's got on her face now, Chloe thought.

Clark charged in through the debris, careful to exert only a human amount of strength. "Chloe, Lois!" he yelled, "where are you?"

Chloe heard him and called back. "I'm here Clark, we're okay!" and she headed in the direction of his voice.

Lois looked at her oddly. "How did you know Smallville would come?" she asked suspiciously.

"He was coming to see me today," Chloe thought fast, "and I didn't know, I just hoped. Lois, he's been my friend like, forever, and he's gotten us both out of a lot of tight spots, I just thought of him. Okay?"

Lois looked skeptical and then they were interrupted by Clark as he swept Chloe into a hug. Before Lois could say anything she found herself pulled into his arms next and returned his hug with tears threatening to come.

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Kate staggered around the corner to the car, unlocked the door, buckled Nick into the back seat and collapsed behind the steering wheel. Still trying to catch her breath she started the car and waited, turning on the radio to calm her nerves. What she heard on the news didn't help her relax. One station was leading with the assassination attempt on Lionel Luthor; another was covering the strange fire at the Daily Planet. Combined with the attempt on her life it all added up to one name, Lex.

Kate pulled out her cell phone and tried to call Maria but got no answer. A chill washed over her and she found herself crying out to Maria over the silent phone. Kate sat and watched and waited for the strangers that she had decided to trust. Frustration and helplessness rose in her and tears for Maria ran down her cheeks unnoticed as her frantic calls continued to go unanswered.

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Clark tried to get Chloe and Lois to go to the hospital but Lois was intent on talking to the police and investigating the strange fire and Chloe was determined to help him find Maria. Since her laptop was now a melted hunk of plastic they decided to use his and he disappeared and then returned to her with it in a matter of seconds. They had retreated to a bench in a small park down the street from the Daily Planet and their heads bent close over the computer as Chloe's fingers flew over the keys. They stared in silence at the map before them.

"She's over the Atlantic Ocean." Chloe looked at Clark with tear filled eyes. "I'm sorry Clark; you can't run to her there."

Clark stared at the screen and swallowed hard to clear the lump that formed in his throat. Maria was out of his reach and in Lex's hands. A sick fear filled him at the thought of what Lex would do to her.

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Lex felt a shiver of pleasure as he watched Maria's fear grow. He moved towards her with the syringe and laughed when she ran to the far end of the plane's cabin. "Oh now Maria, it wont hurt." He reassured her in a velvet smooth, soothing voice. "This is just a truth serum developed by Luthorcorps for the military. It's similar to sodium pentothal but more reliable." He moved towards her in such a way that she was cornered in the rear of the plane. "One dose and you will be eager to answer any question posed to you and I will know Clark Kent's secret once and for all.

Maria felt the fear washing over her, shuddering through her body in waves. She shook uncontrollably and it made her angry that she couldn't stop because she knew Lex could see her fear. She couldn't tell Lex Clark's secret. If Lex ever found out Clark was an alien, Clark's life would become a living hell. If Lex found out how to hurt Clark he could capture him, render him helpless, and Clark would never see the outside of 33.1.

Picturing Clark lying helpless and in pain, strapped to a table with scientists gathered around gave her a rush of rage so strong it drove out all fear. She resolved to hit Lex with all she had when he came close, and she considered some of the moves Chloe had taught her, including the lethal ones.

She knew Lex was stronger than she was and she knew she would probably only get one good shot at him. It would have to be a surprise, if he were expecting it he would block it and she would be at his mercy. Maria allowed herself to slump against the cabin wall as though she were about to faint. It wasn't hard to fake weakness when she really did feel like her knees were loose with terror.

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Kate blinked back tears and stared out the window while sending up a prayer to God for her girl. At last she saw Scott running towards the vehicle while supporting Matt with an arm under his shoulder. She revved the engine and prepared to leave in a hurry. Where to go was the question. Was there anywhere safe from Lex?

Scott eased Matt into the back seat next to Nick and Kate felt a tendril of fear shoot up her spine at the sight of the blood soaked stranger sitting next to her son. Matt forced a gentle smile through his pain at Nick and Kate watched in amazement as her son smiled back.

"Hey Nick," said Matt, "You okay?" Sweat beaded on his pale forehead and his voice came out strained and breathless. How did he know her son's name, Kate wondered.

Nick smiled at Matt and then reached towards him, "I'm okay Matt, but you're hurt." Nick looked to his astonished Mother, "Mommy, I think Matt needs to go to the hospital."

Kate turned to Scott as he got in the passenger side, "First, where do we go, and second how does he know my son?" she asked as she pulled onto the street. Scott glanced back at Matt and exchanged a look.

"It's just grazed, in and out, no bone. I need stitches and probably some blood but I'll hold together." Matt said, his voice tight.

"Matt will be okay for the moment. We need to get you to a safe place first." Scott looked around, "Turn right at the next block," he said, then he looked back to see if they were being followed and frowned when he caught a glimpse of a black SUV pulling into the lane a few cars behind them.

"To answer your second question, we met Nick when we came to report to Mr. Queen. You were in the lab and Nick was on site in his preschool. Mr. Queen thought it would be best if Nick knew us in case the worst happened and you, ah…weren't available. We were going to introduce ourselves to you as well but there was no time. Lex was moving fast and we had to get back to our team." He glanced over at Kate to see her knuckles clenching on the steering wheel as she thought of what he meant by "not available".

He looked behind them again and noticed the SUV had turned also and was gaining on them. "Cut through this parking lot, cross that traffic and reverse your direction, as fast as you can." He smiled a little crookedly at her expression, "We're being followed. Can you drive fast and break traffic laws or should we switch drivers? It would be dangerous to stop now, they'd probably open fire on us but if you can't…"

"I can do it." Said Kate calmly and she sped up, whipped the car suddenly through the parking lot, shot out across three lanes of heavy traffic through a gap that was barely there and bounced across a low median to put herself in the lane going the opposite direction. When they came to the intersection she saw the light about to turn red and looked to check traffic. There was a chance and she took it, blowing through the red light and then turning right at the next block. Kate glanced over at Scott to get further directions.

Scott's eyebrows shot up and he grinned at her. "I guess you can," he said, "Now we need to drive about five blocks and turn left, we're almost to the house. I'll keep an eye out for our shadow but I think you lost them."

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Clark closed his eyes as the world spun around him. It was hard to get his breath as he thought of Maria in danger and yet out of his reach. He focused all his thoughts on her, if he could just think himself there, if wanting it this badly could only make him able to go where his heart and soul longed to be.

He had flown once, as Kal El, maybe he could do it again. If he could only remember how he had done it. At the time it had seemed easy, effortless, and as natural as breathing. He searched his broken memory of that time and moaned in frustration when he came back with nothing but the knowledge that he could fly, if he knew how.

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Kate pulled up to the gate and they passed her through as though expecting her. The walls and guards made her nervous and Scott picked up on it. "The guards are to protect those inside, not keep them inside." He said with a reassuring smile. "My wife and children are here and so are Matt's. We knew once we became open about our work for Oliver Queen they would become targets for Lex."

Kate looked at him with admiration, "Yet, you did it anyway. You are very brave men. Thank you for saving us."

Scott looked embarrassed "I just had to do the right thing, I don't feel brave."

Matt looked out the window and explained. "I got my job as a security guard to protect Lex because I like being the good guy." He looked significantly at Kate as if to say, and we know how that panned out.

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Lex noticed Maria slumping against the wall as he moved towards her, unfortunately he also noticed the look of determination that briefly flashed across her face, and the way she ceased to tremble when she looked at him. She's up to something, he thought as he reached out to grab her arm.

Maria lashed out with the heel of her hand to his face and as he blocked the blow she came in with her other hand at his throat. He blocked that one hard and followed up with a blow of his own to her face. Maria fell back against the wall with a scream, holding her aching head. She lay there huddled against the wall sobbing as Lex stood above her and gloated. "Come on, Maria, you didn't half try. You hesitated to kill me; I could see it in your eyes, a reluctance to harm, you poor, weak, gentle fool." and he quickly plunged the needle into her shoulder and stepped back.

Maria could feel the drug burning its way into her body and wondered how long before it took effect. Leaning against the wall she stared blankly at a light blinking above her head. Emergency Exit, the sign read and there was a button to push near the door. That was what she needed she thought, an exit, a way out, freedom.

She could feel her mind getting clouded as she tried to think of how many miles up they were. She could tell from Lex's expression it wouldn't be long now before the questions started. Suddenly Maria made up her mind and lunged for the button. The cabin door opened and the plane shook. Wind sucked through the cabin and everything unattached was pulled out the door. Maria lurched upright to the opening and, begging God for forgiveness and hoping Clark would never know why, she jumped out of the plane.

As soon as the door opened Lex realized what she was doing and it shocked him that anyone could be so stupid to choose death over answering a few questions. He saw his answers getting ready to jump and he lunged to grab her. He felt the plane jerk as her weight left it, and then he was tossed against the doorjamb so hard it knocked him unconscious. His limp body slid out the door and tumbled through the clouds.

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Clark kept his eyes closed and ignored everything around him as he focused on going to Maria. He had to fly, he flew in dreams, he floated a few times with Maria, he flew as Kal El, he could fly. He knew it was there, just out of reach, like a name you can't remember. Up, he willed himself. A gasp made him open his eyes and look down to Chloe. About ten feet down. Surprised, he fell immediately and hit the ground hard enough to make a dent in the soft grass.

"Clark! You Flew!" cheered Chloe and then she looked around terrified. "We need to go somewhere private before you take off again. Thank God everyone is staring at the Planet."

"There's no time for that!" exclaimed Clark, excited beyond words and aching to get to Maria right now. "Show me the map again so I know where to go." Chloe showed it to him and looked around nervously watching for onlookers.

Clark looked closely at it and then gathering himself he gave one of his biggest jumps. He rose swiftly into the air and then turned and accelerated, disappearing in a blur of red and blue. Chloe's eyes grew wide when she heard the sonic boom. "Go Clark!" she whispered and found she needed to sit down.

To be continued…

_Well? What do you think? I'd like to say thank you to those of you who took the time to review, and for all those silent people who've been reading since the beginning. I really hope you are enjoying this! Yes…there is more coming soon._


	32. Chapter 32

Stars and Water

Chapter32

The wind was cold as it whipped Maria's body and it was hard for her to catch her breath. Her fear left her and she was filled with a strange expectant calm. There was nothing she could do but fall and she had a long ways to go.

Time seemed to stop as her thoughts sped around her mind. She wondered how long it would take to hit the ocean. She decided to spend her last moments in prayer and looked out at the beauty that surrounded her and found herself filled with love for this earth and everyone in it.

She prayed to God to take care of Clark and her calm disappeared as she worried about how he would handle her death. She hoped he would never find out she died to protect his secret. He would feel bad enough already that he hadn't saved her, she knew how hard he always was on himself. Sadness filled her at the thought of never seeing Clark again and she called out his name in a sob as she broke down and cried for all she would miss in this world.

Clark focused all his will on speed and was shocked and thrilled when he found out just how fast he could go. He passed a military jet going Mach 5 like it was standing still and soon he spotted Lex's plane. He adjusted his direction and swooped towards the aircraft. Clark noticed that a door was open and the plane seemed unstable. He wondered what Lex had done. Had he thrown Maria from the plane? Clark looked down and saw, far below him, two bodies spinning in freefall. Then he heard Maria cry out his name and his heart felt like it froze in his chest when he realized one of the bodies was hers.

Clark flew to her with all the speed he dared, not wanting to overshoot her he slowed down when he approached. He noticed the other body was Lex and passed by his limp form on his way to Maria.

Maria covered her face in her hands and curled herself up around her pain as she grieved. She missed Clark already; she missed him so much she could almost feel his arms around her and hear his voice comforting her.

"Shhh, Maria. It's okay, you're safe now." Clark murmured, close to tears himself, "Don't cry sweetheart. I've got you, you're safe." And he gently pulled her close to his chest and tucked her head against his neck, soothing her with his voice and hands. Clark kissed her forehead and tried to get her to move her hands and open her eyes. "Maria look at me, open your eyes, you're safe."

Maria slowly moved her hands down as Clark's arms stayed there and Clark's voice continued. Was she unconscious? Was this a dream or was the drug Lex had injected her with making her hallucinate? Either way it was Clark and she could never resist him for long. Maria looked into his loving eyes and saw the tears brimming there. She frowned a little and touched his cheek.

"Please don't cry for me Clark," she whispered and then she looked around and gasped as she realized they were no longer falling, they were slowly rising. "You're really here!" she exclaimed as joy flooded into her, "you're flying!" and hope replaced the despair she had felt only moments before. "My God Clark, when did you learn to fly?"

Clark grinned at her, "A few minutes ago, when I saw that you were over the ocean."

She grabbed him and held on tight, "Are you sure we won't fall?" Now that she knew she could live the fear of falling came back and made her swallow hard.

Clark laughed, "Trust me, I know what I'm doing," and he spun in the air a bit to show her he meant it. When he turned he caught sight of Lex. Part of him wanted to leave him to his fate. Okay, a large part of him wanted to leave him to his fate.

Maria saw the direction of his gaze and gasped at the sight of Lex falling rapidly towards the sea. They could let him die. Do nothing and all their problems with him would be over. It wasn't wrong to just look away was it? It wouldn't be murder, exactly. Clark wouldn't be killing him; he could just choose not to save him. Maria looked at Clark's face and knew he was wrestling with this dilemma. She kept silent, this was his choice and she would accept whatever decision he made.

Clark sighed heavily and swooped down to Lex, grabbing his limp body by the coat collar and slowly stopping his descent so as not to rip the garment off him. Looking around he found what he was looking for and altered his course accordingly. Sometimes it sucked being the good guy, he thought as he saved Lex once again. Maria shuddered at the nearness of Lex but when she saw where Clark was heading her face eased into a grin. Oh, but her Clark Kent was not only good he was smart, she thought happily.

Lex woke up face down on the sand and wondered how on earth he got that way. The last thing he remembered was diving to grab Maria. If he fell he'd be dead so where was he, and how did he get here? Lex sat up and studied his surroundings. He saw ocean, sand, coconut palms, and nothing else as far as he could see in all directions. Oh shit, not again, he thought.

To be continued…

_Please review? Pretty please with sugar on top? Pretty please with an update on top?_


	33. Chapter 33

_This is the last chapter y'all. I hope you have enjoyed the story! I'd like to especially thank __**Spaniard**__ for sticking with me and encouraging me from the very beginning! I'd also like to thank __**harrypotterlovekitten, BenderTheOffender,LionRawr, Razgriz 24, hacker-g, kyalpn, sealkid 3, ElDani, Wilhelm001, Chlollie, and kixtoby. **__Thank you for letting me know you like it and encouraging me to keep on posting!_

_Whew!! I'd have never made it without you._

_Now…on with the story…_

Stars and Water

Chapter 33

Clark and Maria drifted through the sky over the ocean towards home. Now that he had her safe in his arms Clark was in no hurry. He checked Maria thoroughly for any injuries and could only find a growing bruise on her cheekbone. "Are you okay?" he asked, as he peered into her eyes, they looked oddly dilated and he hoped she didn't have a concussion.

"I'm fine Clark," and Maria giggled, her speech slightly slurred "The drug that Lex injected me with seems to have taken away my headache." And she sighed and rested her head against his chest, melting into his arms.

"Lex injected you with something! What was it?" Clark felt terror wash through him. What had Lex done? Was it lethal? He studied Maria and felt a little reassured, her heart beat was strong and steady, and she seemed okay.

"Hmm" Maria sighed and kissed Clark's neck as she answered happily, "It was a truth serum. He thought he could find out your secrets from me but I didn't let him." She giggled again, and patted his chest "You should have seen his face when I jumped!" then she looked up with wide eyes. "I didn't want you to know that!"

Clark felt like his heart had stopped. "You…" he had to clear the lump from his throat to talk and still it came out as a whisper "You jumped." It was his worst nightmare, someone he loved dying to protect his secret.

"Believe me, I tried to fight first but he won." Maria touched her cheek and frowned, then she looked up at Clark and smiled, "but we beat him in the end!" and she laughed happily. "I still can't believe you can fly!" Maria looked around at the sparkling water below them and the puffy white clouds scattered above. The breeze whipping her hair was cold but she felt warm in his arms. The drug had taken full effect now and it made her feel drowsy and relaxed.

Clark was not relaxed at all. He was wrestling with the concept that Maria had chosen death over betraying his secret to Lex. He spiraled down into a circle of guilt and self doubt. He should have gotten to her sooner; he should never have let Lex take her in the first place. If he had really loved her he would never have told her the truth and she wouldn't have been in such danger to begin with. He unconsciously pulled her tighter to him at the thought of her leap out of the plane. My God she was brave, he thought, feeling unworthy of such love.

Maria felt his arms tighten and even through the happy haze of Lex's drug she knew all was not well with Clark. She looked up at him and saw the pain in his eyes. Time for more truth she thought.

"Clark if I hadn't met you I'd already be dead." She said bluntly, Clark looked surprised and started to argue. "No, please let me finish." She said, brushing his lips with her fingertips. She was distracted for a moment at the touch of his lips but brought her wandering mind back to the topic at hand when she looked into his tortured eyes.

"One, you saved me from the river," she held up one finger for emphasis, "Two, I made an enemy of Lex with no help from you in his 33.1 lab, and then you saved me again." Maria poked him in the chest, then frowned and rubbed gently where she had poked him, forgetting it couldn't possibly have hurt his bullet proof skin.

"Then I was kidnapped by Lex and you rescued me." She could see she was getting through to him but he still looked disposed to argue, "Finally, its true Lex wouldn't have kidnapped me this time if I didn't know your secret. He would have simply killed me to hurt my mom." Clark looked stunned, he hadn't thought of that. "One last thing," Maria said quietly, "I love you and there is nothing you can do about it so please stop torturing yourself and kiss me."

Clark stared at Maria letting all she had said sink in, and then he bent his head and put all the love he could into his tender kiss. Maria felt her head spin as she returned his kiss passionately and when she could speak again she whispered, "I think I like this kissing while flying thing, let's try it some more. Besides you can't take me home yet, God knows what I might say to someone before this stupid drug wears off." She looked around at the empty sky and grinned at Clark, "Let's find out what you can do, Fly Boy"

Clark grinned back and laughed out loud at her whoop when he poured on the speed and shot up higher, did a barrel roll and then dove towards the sea. Maybe it was the lingering effects of the drug, or maybe it was just her faith in Clark but Maria felt no fear as they played in the air, pushing Clark's limits. Much later Clark slowed down, lying on his back with Maria sitting confidently balanced on his lap. "Well, what do you think?" he asked a little breathlessly. When Maria shifted her weight it took his mind off flying and they sank towards the sea a little every time she turned to look around.

Maria's eyes were bright with excitement, "Better than the world's best roller coaster." She declared happily and then she noticed the sun was setting. "We should probably go home now, are you tired?"

Clark watched the sun sink into the ocean with a flare of green against a deep red sky. "I'm a little tired," he admitted, "but it really doesn't take much energy to fly. It feels as natural as walking now. I can't believe it took me so long to learn." He gathered her in his arms and spun in the air until they were upright with her hands clasped behind his neck. The sky was a deep blue now and the first stars were out. The ocean had become calm beneath them and the stars were reflected on its silky dark surface. As they kissed they drifted above the swells and in the dark it became hard to tell where the stars began and the water ended.

The End


End file.
